


the freeway leads to the grave

by rvziel



Series: The Skeletons In Our Closets [1]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Blackwatch Days, Blackwatch has a group chat, Canon Divergence, Exhibitionism, Humor, Jesse the Achievement Hunter(tm), M/M, Overwatch Days, Past Abuse, Pining, Polyamory, prequel fic, slow burn kind of, so much pining
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-26
Updated: 2016-08-16
Packaged: 2018-07-26 22:39:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 33,894
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7592959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rvziel/pseuds/rvziel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gabe first spoke to Jesse McCree when he was sitting across from him in the interrogation room.  And after a very, very long back and forth conversation with Jack (“Babe, please, I have a good feeling.” “If you’re wrong, we’re both in trouble, and I’m telling Mama how you fucked up.”) Gabriel had managed to strike a deal where, if Jesse proved himself after some training, he could join Blackwatch instead of imprisonment. Jesse hadn’t hesitated to agree to the offer, because, well, the military beat prison.<br/>And within a month, Jesse McCree had become an official member of Blackwatch. One of the best sharpshooters.<br/>One of the few things Gabe is still proud of.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I Prayed To the Eight Ball God

**Author's Note:**

> I'm the elusive Sam that Alex would keep mentioning.  
> Hello! Welcome to The Trio's Roots the fic! Here you can get a taste of it all before The Fall in Alex's fic, "Our Old Bones Rattle." This has taken me some time to write, but I'm happy with it! And I hope you're all happy with it! Some notes before we begin.  
> -Italicized sentences, within context, are generally spoken in Spanish.  
> -Gabe's family is a product of Alex and I, therefore, they are NOT canon. They're canon in my heart, though.  
> -This goes into Jesse's gang activity at one point. Be advised there are sensitive topics (dubcon, namely), so if you can't read it, don't worry! It's just that one point.  
> -Canon divergence is necessary simply because we don't have the complete timeline. If you're reading this after Blizzard has dropped a ton of new info and I haven't gone to fix it, I hope you can still enjoy it!  
> With that, I hope you enjoy! Special thanks to Alex for kicking my ass to write this and helping plan a lot of it, along with helping me edit, and to Hida who had a few ideas to pop out.

_"Here's to hoping._  
_Here's to coping._  
_Here's to dying on your knees.  
Here's to losing everyone and everything because you cut off your own feet."_

  


Gabriel Reyes found Jesse McCree when the man had a revolver pointed between his eyes. His breath was heavy, and he was covered in blood and grime, obviously worn down. Now, in any other situation, Gabe would have allowed for someone to sneak behind McCree and knock him out so they could take him in with the rest of the gang, but… something in his gut told him otherwise. Maybe it was the glare Jesse had, with gunpowder near his left eye, looking directly at his target. Maybe it was the fact he looked too young to be in a gang, and to be going down the wrong path in life. Maybe it was the glint of gold around his neck, he could have sold it for a decent amount of money by now, but he hasn’t, so it must be sentimental.

One of Gabe’s men knocked the revolver from Jesse and had him pinned, looking at Gabe expectantly. Making a snap decision, Gabe tossed the rope he had on hand to the man, saying, “Tie ‘em, put ‘em in the helicopter.” By the time Jesse was tied up, Gabe was yelling to make room in the copter for one more, and treat any wounded.

Cleanup would be fast, because it’s Blackwatch, and although Area 51 was remote enough, they couldn’t let word get out about the existence of the program.

Gabe first spoke to Jesse McCree when he was sitting across from him in the interrogation room. His replies were short and vague, answering questions like “How old are you?” with “Legal.” He was cleaned up now, but in an unflattering orange jumpsuit, and more bandages wrapped around parts where he’d been hurt. And after a very, very long back and forth conversation with Jack (“Babe, please, I have a good feeling.” “If you’re wrong, we’re both in trouble, and I’m telling Mama how you fucked up.”) Gabriel had managed to strike a deal where, if Jesse proved himself after some training, he could join Blackwatch instead of imprisonment. Jesse hadn’t hesitated to agree to the offer, but Gabriel couldn’t help to think it was so he could be back in his serape and have a revolver in his hands.

And within a month, Jesse McCree had become an official member of Blackwatch. One of the best sharpshooters.

One of the few things Gabe is still proud of.

+++++

A meeting was called to introduce the new head doctor for Overwatch. From what Gabe knew before, Angela Ziegler was head surgeon at a Swiss hospital before being recruited by Overwatch. Meeting her, though, was different. Angela Ziegler _radiated_ kindness. However, there was an entire briefing for the induction ceremony with that meeting, and _yes,_ he was told to read it. But after a few drinks and Jack being in just his general proximity, he did not look at the manilla folder again until he was rushing to get ready for her induction ceremony the next day.

Of course, though, Jack was level headed as they were getting ready. He was the one giving the speech to introduce Angela before she would speak about the newest branch of Overwatch. Jack was already showered and dressed by the time Gabe had even found his suit, but it was _fine_ because Gabe has been in the military long enough to take a shower and be ready in under ten minutes. But, as he came out in his suit and tie, Jack laughed as he had to help his boyfriend redo the knot. After that, though, he gave Gabe a quick peck on the nose, and headed out.

There were going to be media outlets, Overwatch was supported by the UN after all. The addition of a medical branch had been the talk for the past six months as they built a new wing to the building, ordered equipment, and recruited doctors. Gabe was skimming through the folder just to make sure there was nothing that would throw him off and, nope, speeches and a dinner and a banquet. Typical Overwatch ceremony.

When Gabe and Jack arrived, most of the other members of Overwatch were there. Blackwatch was informed that they could be there too, and had any questions been asked about who they were, just give a division of Overwatch and say they worked in the offices. Sometimes it still irritated Gabriel that he and his men had to hide their existence, but he knew what the UN would do if word got out they let Blackwatch exist. And Gabe did not need that in his life, no sir.

A podium was at the front of the ballroom, on top of a sort of stage. Tables were set up for the dinner that would be had after the ceremony, and media outlets swarmed in their own areas specifically for the ceremony. UN representatives were there on the stage with Angela by the time Jack and Gabriel made it up, taking their respective spots next to her. Overwatch and Blackwatch had their own tables near the front, mingling in the best way they knew how: tipsy with a dash of overconfidence.

God Bless the military.

But once the clock struck six, everyone was beginning to quiet down as the head of the UN security council took his spot on the podium. The moment he began speaking was the moment everyone was quiet, minus the camera flashes and quiet translators for the news outlets. Gabe and Jack stood next to each other, hands behind their backs, and looking out at the crowd. When Gabe was a child, he never dreamt of being a CO in the military, working so close with the UN. He never imagined have a man like Jack at his side and sticking around for as long as he had, and he never imagined he’d be so calm about it. That it was his normal.

“And now, I would like to introduce the head of the medical branch of Overwatch, Doctor Angela Ziegler,” the head of the security council spoke, and the clapping that reverberated through the room was near deafening.

“When I was a child, I had lost my parents to war. When I went into the medical field, I watched soldiers come in, bloodied, I watched them take their last breaths, or-” A breath in, it was fairly obvious Angela was not used to large crowds.

“-Or I would watch them take their first steps after six months. I would help them adapt to their new limbs. As a child, I vowed to save lives, but in every pacifistic way I could. I admire our soldiers. I do not wish to see them lose their lives, their families, their futures.”

As Angela continued, the crowd continued to listen dutifully. She spoke earnestly, with emotion those who had lost loved ones could understand. In Gabe’s mind, he could understand the UN’s choice for her. With the amount of horror she had seen, anyone would be willing to do they can to protect others.

But, Angela swore in, hand up in oath, and smiled at the crowd. Barely eighteen and making her late parents proud. Mama would like her when Gabe got to bringing her around.

The banquet kicked off though, and Jack and Gabe were finally allowed to mingle. When they got off the stage, they met with Angela once more in order to congratulate her and her accomplishments.

“I’m sure your parents would be proud,” Jack said, smiling. “Welcome to Overwatch,”

“Thank you, Jack,” Angela smiled, holding a flute glass of champagne. “It’s an honor to work with you both.”

“You flatter us,” Jack responded, laughing.

“Flatter who?” A voice piped up, southern accent drawing out and causing Gabe and Jack to roll their eyes. Angela just kept smiling as McCree popped in between them, clean shaven as ordered by Gabe. His hat was still on, despite the fact it was a black tie event. His grin was bright though, seemingly twenty five and on top of the world. Or at least, Gabe thinks. He was on his own for five years, and able to legally drink, as his student told him.

“You certainly don’t flatter us,” Gabe retorted, and Jesse faked hurt, bringing his hand to his heart.

“You wound me, Gabe. But this is _the_ Dr. Angela Ziegler,” Jesse’s grin changed to flirtatious faster than the speed of light, and he held out his hand. Angela giggled as she placed hers in Jesse’s, and he brought her hand towards his lips to give them a light peck. “I’m Jesse McCree. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“McCree, Jesus _Christ_ , don’t get Angela into bed when she’s only been with us for thirty minutes,” Jack groaned.

“No, no! Who do you think I am, Commander?” Jesse laughed, letting go of Angela hand and taking a sip of his champagne. “I have _standards._ ”

Jack snorted as Gabe barked out a laugh, and although Angela looked moderately confused, she let out a small giggle. Jack felt as though she would fit well into Overwatch, with the way she was fitting in with the humor.

“I would certainly _hope_ someone like you had standards, Jesse,” Angela grinned, and Gabe groaned.

“Don’t encourage him. I’m begging you,” He pleaded.

“But Gabriel! I’m a fan of begging!” Angela’s grin grew wider as she brought the flute of champagne to her mouth, and Jack’s face went a little red as Gabriel coughed. Jesse grinned back, though, the look in his eyes saying _I’m going to get this woman to top me before I die._

And, as everyone settled down for dinner, Jesse sitting with Jack and Gabriel, and those two with Angela, Jesse turned to Angela. He Brought the palm of his hand to his chin, leaning on it and giving a flirtatious grin.

“ _Now_ I can take you to bed with me, if you so desire,” Jesse said to Angela, and she laughed as Jack and Gabe groaned in annoyance.

It worked, though.

+++++

“You weren’t kidding all those times you said I was too young to drink, you know,” Jesse said over the rim of a bourbon, grinning at his superior officer. While they were stationed in Berlin for a while, it happened to be Jesse’s birthday, and he’d chosen a German bar for celebration this year. After they had completed their Blackwatch mission, Gabe and his men strolled into the bar in celebration of their sharpshooter, buying his drinks and encouraging the inevitable hangover that he would have in the morning.

Gabe raised an eyebrow, stopping from taking a sip of his beer. He looked Jesse up and down, now in civilian clothes, serape covering up most of his figure. He did look decidedly older, maybe now it was the way his face was framing out, maybe it was the muscle tone, maybe it was the way he carried himself.

“You know. You never did give your age to anyone but Dr. Zieglar when you joined,” Gabe said, leaning on to the bar.

“Yep. Said I was legal, left it at that,” Jesse grinned. “Y’all picked me up right before I turned eighteen.”

“...Come again?” Gabe asked, frowning.

“I turned eighteen a month after I joined Blackwatch,” Jesse’s grin grew wider, drinking his bourbon.

“So… you’re only twenty one,” Gabe replied, dumbfounded. Dammit, he owed Ana fifty bucks now, they’d made a bet when McCree first came in where Ana said he couldn’t be older than twenty, and Gabe bet older than twenty one.

And McCree laughed into his drink, nodding. Gabe continued, growing a little more irritated. “You said you were legal when you joined. I bought beers for you and, kid, I’m not opposed to drinking once you’re eighteen since we’re all young at some point, but you’ve been _sleeping with everyone in Overwatch and Blackwatch_ since you got here.”

“Hey, not till I was eighteen. And I can’t help it that you ‘nd Commander Morrison managed to recruit so many attractive people.”

Gabe laid his head down on to the bar in annoyance as McCree laughed, patting the man’s back. “Cheer up, Gabi, joined the Deadlock Gang when I was thirteen, killed my first man when I was fourteen, lost my virginity when I was fifteen. Recruiting me into a low-profile branch in Overwatch isn’t the worst thing that’s happened to me, ‘specially since it set me straight. Well-”

“Not _straight_ ,” Gabe finished, head still down on the bar. McCree let out another bark of laughter, nodding in agreement. “But I blackmailed-”

“Nah, you didn’t. You gave me a choice, sir,” McCree nudged Gabe with his shoulder, and signaled the bartender for another drink, since his bourbon was getting low. “And I thank you for it. Even though I still have nightmares from training days.”

“Somebody had to kick your ass,” Gabe replied. “Might as well have been me.”

Later on, though, when Jesse was too drunk to walk in a straight line, and it took two people to carry him back, Jesse just kept mumbling about how happy he was now, how Blackwatch was his home, and Gabriel just laughed it off as his men teased him. They dropped the young man down on to his motel bed, leaving a glass of water and a bottle of aspirin for him to use in the morning. Gabe hadn’t seen Jesse ever get truly drunk, probably because he was underaged before, but it didn’t stop him from snapping a picture of the man drooling and cuddling his serape close, an image to later be used as real blackmail.

Gabe sauntered off and out of Jesse’s room, shutting the door and pulling out the key to his motel room. Once he unlocked the door and went inside, he grabbed a paper cup off of the counter and drew some water from the sink, pulling out his phone and scrolling through his contacts. Once he found Jack’s name, he tapped the call button, and held the phone to his ear. One ring, two, three- “ _Mmmhello?_ ” sounded from the phone, and Gabe grinned.

“Heya,” Gabe responded, taking a sip of water. “How was your day?”

“Long,” Jack’s sleepy voice responded, and Gabe could hear Jack looking for his lamp switch. “You were supposed to call earlier.”

“Jesse’s birthday was today-” Jack hummed quietly, and Gabe rolled his eyes, “-Relax, _Jacques,_ we went drinking and he nearly passed out at the bar. He turned twenty one today.”

“Wait- what? That young?” Jack asked, genuinely shocked.

“My reaction too, darling. But I’m calling you now, and I _miiiiss yoou,_ ” Gabe sang, ready to shove his pants off if Jack played along.

“I miss you too,” Jack chuckled. “But you’re drunk, and I have to be up in four hours, so love you and _get some sleep_.” And with that, the line went dead, and Gabe frowned.

“Love you too,” he said quietly, wiggling out from his pants and turning his lamp off as well. He slid under the covers, laid back down, and fell asleep.

+++++

Gabe did not like when people would forget to lock their doors.

Correction; Read:

Gabe did not like when _Jesse_ would forget to lock his door.

And it’s mainly because it would leave Gabe in an awkward situation when he knocked and walked in with a report for Jesse to fill out, but _instead_ got a full view of Jesse in reverse cowgirl on top of _Jesus Christ that is Reinhardt, that is definitely Hasselhoff-loving Reinhardt._ And with nothing in his brain working at the moment, Gabe just looked as the two (who have stopped), leaned down, left the piece of paper on the floor, turned around, and left. He did not tell anyone what he saw when they questioned why he had a thousand yard stare, just shrugged and proceeded to pop open a beer and down it in one go.

Later on, when he was in his room and watching whatever show he had lined up to watch on his days off, he called his mother, as he did anytime he doesn’t know what to do. He didn’t exactly know how to approach the subject matter with her, though, and trying to plan it while the phone rang was perhaps not the best of ideas. As he lowered the volume on his TV, he heard the familiar background noise from her house, and smiled as she shouted “ _Hijo!_ ” over the phone.

“Hello, mama,” Gabe responded. “How have you been?” It had only been two days since his last call to her, but, hey, a lot could happen.

“I’ve been well, Gabi, your nephew keeps all of us busy when your father and I are not working,” She was smiling, he could hear, and that made his heart warm. “How are you? How are your friends? Jack?”

Martha Reyes was an affectionate woman, one who is immediately referred to as mom by anyone she meets. Therefore, when Jack came around when he and Gabe started dating, she immediately began to ask about him all the time. How he was, if he’s eating enough, when they would get married. Typical motherly things. When she met his squadron, they affectionately referred to her as Mama Reyes, and proceeded to beg Gabe to bring her food over to them next time he saw her. The only one she hadn’t met, though, was McCree, and that’s because Gabe did not _trust_ McCree around her yet.

“I’m well, Mama. My friends are well also, just enjoying their days off. Jack is doing fine, I’m going to see him a bit later tonight for dinner,” He rattled off his answers, hoping they satisfied her.

“That’s good, hijo. Is he going to-” Gabriel cut her off for now, not really sure on how to answer the question.

“Not tonight, mama. We’re not going anywhere particularly nice, either. I, ah- called for advice.”

“Oh? Spit it out, then,” She demanded, then proceeded to say something to her daughter which Gabe couldn’t hear, since she must have covered the phone.

“Well, mama, there’s someone in my squadron who I haven’t told you about, and he, ah, causes some… trouble,” for a lack of better word, of course. Gabriel sighed.

“Oh! How long have they been with you all, Gabi?” She asked, seemingly curious.

“...For a little over three years, now,” He responded, ready for her to scold him.

“Three- three years, hijo! And you have not brought him around? What has gotten into you?” She scolded. “Why have you kept his existence from me for so long?”

“Mama, that’s what I’m getting to. He’s perfectly obedient on the field, but off it, he’s a handful. He’s slept with the majority of the team-”

“And what is wrong with sleeping around? He has a right to his body, Gabi,” she said. “That can not possibly be it.”

“Mama, I’m just wondering what I should do. Should I be worried for his mental health?” Gabe wasn’t opposed to sleeping around, not really, he was just wondering if it was a sign that Jesse had some problems with himself, and used sex to cope. He remembered a long time ago in high school psychology that the teacher said self harm could be a multitude of things, including frequent sex with many different partners, and it was his job as a CO to watch out for signs of that to report to Angela later.

“Why would his mental health be the reason?” She inquired.

Oh dear. “He’s ah, been doing this since… he turned eighteen… three years ago…”

“You have left this boy a secret since he was a teenager and I am just now hearing about him? Hijo!” She yelled, and Gabe held the phone away from his ear. “Bring him tomorrow! You are in LA, no?” Curse her for knowing there was an Overwatch base right outside LA they’d all stay at depending on the mission.

“Si, mama-”

“Bring him tomorrow!”

And so Gabe was left apologizing to his mother, promising to help cook tomorrow too, and to bring Jesse around. Later on when he ran into Jesse in the foyer, he pointed a finger at the younger man, saying “Tomorrow you’re meeting my mama. Wear something semi nice and _do not_ bring your cigarettes.”

The squadron oooh’d as they heard that, laughing as Jesse looked confused, unsure about what brought this on. It was only minutes before the chat was changed to “MCCREE WAS JAILBAIT THIS WHOLE TIME,” earning a tired sigh from Jesse. The point of telling people he was legal was that he was the age of consent, meaning he was never jailbait to any of them. They were probably all just jealous he was so handsome at eighteen and upset he was able to talk them all out of their pants at some point. But, the word was, no take-backs.

As he asked around for what Gabe meant by meeting his mama, everyone just laughed and said it was time he meet her, and it only left him nervous the following day as he wore a button up shirt and jeans with his boots, wrapping his serape around himself still. He had purchased some flowers from the store nearby, and when he left with Gabriel, the team wished him luck. He didn’t know what to make of the situation, at that point.

But Gabriel drove to a neighborhood in the suburbs, a clean house with a pretty garden in the front, and a freshly trimmed lawn. It had a nice pine tree in the middle of the lawn, and a toddler was playing outside. When Gabe pulled in, Jesse noticed the toddler clapping and running to a woman with curly hair and a radiant smile, looking just a bit younger than Gabe. As Gabe and Jesse stepped from the car, she was walking over to him, toddler in arms, and going to kiss his cheek. “Gabi!” she exclaimed, and the toddler started grabbing the air. Gabe took him from her arms, kissing the baby’s forehead and saying hello to him.

Jesse stood behind Gabe awkwardly, unsure of what to do with the situation. He held the flowers down by his sides until the woman noticed him, and grinned. “And _you_ must be Jesse. I’d say that I’ve heard a lot about you, but lying’s a sin,” she laughed as she walked over and hugged him. Jesse was shocked for a moment until he wrapped his arms around her awkwardly, smiling. He didn’t have siblings growing up, and with how young this woman looked, and the way the toddler was chanting ‘ _tijo, tijo’_ at Gabe, he could assume this was his sister.

Gabe turned around and gestured at his sister, looking at Jesse. “This is Isabel. She’s my younger sister,” he looked back at her. “Is Miguel here?”

“Miguel is never places on time, you know that Gabi,” she laughed. Gabe shrugged and turned back to Jesse, bouncing the toddler gently. “And this is Julian, Izzy’s baby. Her husband works in the military also.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” Jesse responded, nodding his head. “Um, these flowers are for your family. My Pa told me to never enter a house for the first time empty handed, so…” He handed the bouquet over to Izzy, looking at the ground and unsure of how to act now. Though his father may be close to ten years gone, a lot of his advice still rang in Jesse’s head from time to time.

“ _Gracias_ , Jesse,” Izzy smiled, and took the bouquet, kissing the mans cheek. He grinned in return, following her and Gabe into the house.

Upon entering the house, which smelled like homemade food that Jesse’s stomach reminded he hadn’t had in a while, he saw an older woman who looked almost exactly like Gabe. He had smile lines on her eyes and around her mouth, but her hair was curly and dark, fell to her back, and was...decidedly much shorter than Gabe. But she had his eyes, and it was easy for Jesse to tell that it was Gabriel’s mother. She immediately got up and walked to Gabe, giving him a tight hug and a kiss on his cheek. Izzy made her way to the kitchen with the bouquet and child in tow, presumably to put the flowers in some water.

Jesse stood next to Gabe, nervously clutching at the hem of his sarape, waiting to be noticed. Once the woman turned to Jesse though, her smile grew even brighter, and she brought him into a hug. “And _you_ must be Jesse! Hijo! You didn’t tell me he was this cute!” She hit Gabe’s shoulder with the back of her hand before holding out her arms and enveloping Jesse into a hug. He grinned again, never feeling this welcomed to a new home in years. But, once the hug was over, she was facing Gabe again. She hit the side of his head, causing Gabe to look on and shock and grab her hand with both of his. In an instant, though, she switched to Spanish and began to give Gabe a lecture.

“ _You leave this cutie a secret from me for three years! Three!”_ She held up three fingers, to drive the point home. “ _What is your excuse?_ ”

Before Gabe could pull an answer directly out of his ass, McCree piped in, but with slightly slower Spanish. “ _It wasn’t his fault, ma’am, he didn’t know my real age until a month ago._ ” It was slow, because he hadn’t used Spanish much besides for booty calls or translation years ago in the Deadlock Gang, so he was out of practice.

Both Mrs. Reyes and Gabe looked at him in shock though, before she used her other hand to hit the other side of his head. “ _You didn’t tell me he spoke Spanish, too! What’s gotten into you, huh?_ ”

Gabe was quick to grab her free hand, now holding both of them gently and with panic in his eyes, “ _Mama, I didn’t know-”_

“ _He really didn’t know I speak Spanish,_ ah- I haven’t used it a lot since my Pa died when I was thirteen. I never had much reason to use it,” He finished, embarrassed he had to switch back to English to finish his thoughts. But Mrs. Reyes wiggled her hands free and swatted Gabe’s hip, pointing to what Jesse presumed was the kitchen.

“ _Go see your father, I must speak to Jesse myself,_ ” she demanded, and Gabe sighed, defeated as he made his way to the kitchen. Mrs. Reyes put a gentle hand on Jesse’s shoulder, and guided him to the living room to sit on the couch with her.

Izzy had come back with a saucer, holding mugs of what looked to be coffee when she set it down on the table. Her nephew was following her, and immediately ran over to his grandmother, crawling on to the couch and into her lap. Mrs. Reyes smiled and petted his hair, as Izzy handed a mug of coffee to Jesse.

“I didn’t know how you took your coffee, so I hope this is okay,” She smiled, and Jesse nodded.

“I’m thankful for it either way, Isabel,” he responded, taking a sip.

“It’s just Izzy, really,” she took a mug for her mother, and then one for herself.

“Now, hijo, you don’t have to tell me, but do you have _any_ family?” Mrs. Reyes asked, and Jesse looked at his mug of coffee.

“My Ma died right after I was born, and my Pa died when I was thirteen. I didn’t really have extended family, either,” Jesse shrugged. “And, ah, don’t fault Gabi. I haven’t really told anyone that.” Mrs. Reyes radiated warmth and kindness, the same kind Ana did when she brought Fareeha around for everyone to spend time with her.

Mrs. Reyes looked shocked, though. She set down her mug and brought Jesse into what felt like his five hundredth hug for the day, and kissed the top of his head. “Well, hijo, you have a family here now. _But you’re going to be using Spanish more often, from now on,_ ” She chided.

“ _He speaks Spanish?”_ Izzy asked, shocked.

“ _Yes! And Gabi kept this one hidden from us!”_ Mrs. Reyes gestured.

“ _With reason, I wasn’t…_ _really the best person to bring around_ ,” Jesse finished.

“Nonsense. Ignacio! Gabi! _Bring your butts over to the living room!_ ” She shouted.

When Jesse saw Gabe and his father enter the room, he stood up, and approached Ignacio. Ignacio already had a gentle smile on his face, and extended his hand towards Jesse. Jesse shook the mans hand, before introducing himself as “Jesse McCree, I work with your son.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet any one of Gabi’s friends,” Ignacio replied, going to sit on the recliner. Gabe had already made a spot for himself on the L-shaped couch, right near the edge. Jesse took his spot back next to Mrs. Reyes, seemingly more nervous now that the whole family was around. He shifted a little in place, clasping his hands and rubbing his thumbs together. However, Mrs. Reyes was having none of it, and immediately sought to make him more comfortable.

“Jesse, you have a beautiful serape, _who made it for you?”_ Mrs. Reyes asked, feeling at the time-worn fabric.

“My Ma made it for my Pa before she passed, but he gave it to me, said it looked better on me anyways…” Jesse said, smiling. “It’s all I’ve got of her, ‘sides my necklace.”

“You mean the gold one?” Gabe asked, leaning forward.

It occurred to Jesse that Gabe was also learning about his life right now, since he didn’t really open up to anyone about it before. He still wasn’t sure why he was opening up about it now, but it felt right, and maybe it was because Mrs. Reyes had the same eyes as Gabe, large and brown and full of acceptance. Maybe it was because this was the first home out in the suburbs he had stepped in that wasn’t for a job, that felt like home. Maybe it was because Mrs. Reyes was so ready to accept him in any way, no matter what he’d done.

He took a breath and nodded, “Yeah, that one.”

“Your mother had wonderful taste, Jesse,” Mrs. Reyes responded.

“Thank you, ma- ma’am,” Jesse corrected himself of his slip up, slightly embarrassed.

“...Ignacio, I almost forgot! Could you take Gabi to look at the sink upstairs and see if he can do anything about the leak, _please?_ ” Mrs. Reyes asked, giving Ignacio a look that read ‘ _I need to talk about something away from Gabe for a moment.’_

Ignacio nodded his head dutifully, leaving the chair and coaxing Gabe up from his spot. Gabe frowned as he stood, following his father up the wooden stairs and listening to Ignacio talk about a sink that’s been giving them trouble for a week or so now. Jesse looked back to Mrs. Reyes in confusion, brows furrowed together.

Mrs. Reyes took one of Jesse’s hands though, in her own, and placed another on his shoulder. He wasn’t quite sure what to do, so he placed his free hand over hers. Her facial expression changed serious, though, and for a moment Jesse was scared he did something wrong. But the motherly look remained in her eyes, free of anger, but full of honesty and worry.

“Hijo, if you have no family, _we_ can be your family. Had Gabi told us sooner of you, we would have invited you over more often. _I cannot replace your late mother, God rest her soul, but I can be a mother figure for you, if you so choose,_ ” she finished, rubbing a thumb over his hand.

Izzy slid closer to her mother, putting a hand of her own on top of the other two. “It’s obvious you care for Gabi. We love anyone who loves our own,” she smiled.

“ _...Thank you,_ Mama,” Jesse said quietly, not letting the tears welled in his eyes fall. It was always nice to feel accepted for yourself, rather than your body or your skillset. It was nice to be seen as a person.

“ _Gabi is in trouble for hiding this one,”_ Mama Reyes laughed, pulling her hand away and pulling Jesse into a tight hug. Jesse managed a small laugh as he pulled away, shaking his head.

“ _It really wasn’t Gabi’s fault,_ I hid my age from him for three years, and gave him a hard time,” Jesse laughed.

“Oh hijo, _you have it bad,_ ” Mama Reyes laughed, clasping his shoulder. “ _How long?”_

“How long what?” Jesse asked, confused.

It was the sly look Izzy gave him though, making Jesse’s face turn completely red and causing him to look away. Mama Reyes laughed and said something to Izzy that he couldn’t hear, since he was too busy drinking as much of his coffee in one go as he could in order to avoid answering the question. Okay, sure, there was _admiration_ but it wasn’t something like a _crush_ or, gag, being in love. Gabe was dating Jack, and as far as Jesse was concerned, the two were more monogamous than fucking penguins.

“I- Gabi’s my CO, I just _appreciate_ him for what he’s done-” Jesse was cut off by a bark of laughter from Izzy, though.

“You call him _Gabi_! You’ve got it bad! He only lets a few people call him Gabi,” Izzy poked fun at Jesse, making him flush even more.

“I don’t have it bad, and _even if I did,_ he’s dating Jack. I ain’t no homewrecker,” Jesse frowned.

“You know, hijo, polyamory is very popular nowadays,” Mama Reyes grinned at him, and Jesse stood up.

“Could I use your restroom, please?” Jesse asked, covering his face.

Mama Reyes just laughed and gave him directions, sending Jesse hurrying off to the bathroom. Once inside, he shut the door and locked it, looking in the mirror. His face was still red, so he ran some cold water and wet his hands, patting it lightly in order to get rid of the flush. He couldn’t believe those two read him like an open book.

Yes, he had an admiration, _yes_ , Gabe was attractive. Anyone with those thighs was attractive in Jesse’s eyes. But, Jack Morrison? Farm boy Jack Morrison? Greek God. Jesse wasn’t a home wrecker, no, but Strike Commander Morrison wasn’t even in the same ballpark when it came to comparing him by looks. Jesse was attractive, yes, he knew that about himself. But he could never compete with Jack on any scale.

A knock startled Jesse from his thinking as an unfamiliar male voice asked if the restroom was occupied. Jesse sighed and dried off his hands, going to open the door. Before him, though, was a slightly shorter man than himself, with a mop of curly hair and glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. Considering the eyes and given the context of the entire (ridiculous) situation, Jesse concluded that this was Miguel.

“You must be Jesse,” Miguel grinned, shaking his hand.

“Word travels fast in your family, huh? You must be Miguel,” Jesse asked.

“When I got accepted into med school, four of my family members called five minutes after I read the notice,” Miguel responded, walking past Jesse into the bathroom. Jesse left the doorway, shrugging, and going back to the living room.

Gabe and Ignacio were back downstairs, and Jesse could have sworn his heart skipped a beat. His anxiety must have been noticeable, though, because Izzy just gave a sly wink and went back to talking to her family. The let him relax more, and so he rejoined everyone in conversation.

The night continued on with little problem, minus Gabe’s nephew throwing a mild fit when it was time for bed. Jesse seemed to easily fit in with the family, giving Gabe a hard time about whatever his siblings did. Jesse learned that Miguel was finishing up his last year of med school, and was looking to join the Overwatch medical branch. And once dinner was over, he helped clean up, dry dishes, and took an extra sugar cookie off the plate when nobody was looking.

By the time Gabe and Jesse had to leave, Mama Reyes had already slapped her number into Jesse’s phone with instructions to call whenever he felt, and visit as often as he can. Jesse just nodded and promised to do just that, giving her one last hug after all the goodbyes, and going back to the car with Gabe.

And the trip was silent until about halfway, when Gabe piped up, “You like the family?”

Jesse looked over from the corner of his eye. Gabe was only illuminated by the street lamps at night, and the lights of the car in front of him, but Jesse swore there was a smile somewhere there. And so he smiled in return.

“Yeah. I really do,” Jesse responded, opting to look out the window again.

“Good. I think they like you.”

+++++

Jack used to not like Jesse a whole lot.

He was a tad jealous, and he knew Gabi’s entire family could tell that whenever Gabe brought him and Jesse. But, Gabe said it was because Jesse was considered a part of the family too, and Jack needed to get used to it. And, truth be told, Jesse did fit in well. Everytime he went over, he’d always bring some kind of ift, anything from toys for Julian to flowers for Mama Reyes. And Gabe seemed proud that Jesse was starting to grow up a bit.

He just didn’t like the _looks_ that Jesse sometimes gave Gabe.

When Jesse had first joined, he was irritable at best and an absolute nuisance at worst. He was a pain in the ass to train for a few days at first, Gabe had said one night he came into Jack’s room frustrated. And, when Jack noticed Jesse nearly trying to fight Gabriel during that first month, he had very verbally and graphically threatened Jesse if he hurt the man, what Jack would do. But after that initial month, Jesse calmed down, and Gabriel must have said or done something because Jesse just begun seeing it as a way to right the wrongs of his past.

But nowadays, it looked like Jesse had a _crush_ on Gabe. He’d get those wide eyed puppy dog looks when Gabe wasn’t looking, and it irritated Jack to no end sometimes. But the one who called him out on being a little too passive aggressive with Jesse was Izzy.

“He’s a good kid, Jack,” Izzy had said over coffee. Jesse and Julian were outside, with Jesse pushing the boy on the tire swing Ignacio had set up on the oak tree they had in the backyard. Gabe was outside as well, sitting next to his parents and Miguel. Izzy and Jack had opted to stay inside to avoid mosquitos, sitting at the table near the porch window.

“What brought this on?” Jack asked, looking at her with furrowed brows.

“You were giving him the evil eye from the _window_. Did you know he made it a point when Mama and I accused him of having a crush on Gabi to say Gabi is monogamous, and that he would never dare ruin a happy relationship? He doesn’t even think he’s as good as you in any capacity. But you’re just flat out mean to him sometimes,” Izzy said, frowning. “I don’t get it. Gabi isn’t going to leave you. He’s too dense to notice anything with Jesse.”

“I just don’t trust him a whole lot,” Jack muttered. Izzy gave a frustrated sigh, giving up before the argument escalated. She loved Jack, but he was an idiot sometimes.

She could understand why he was protective, though. Lord knows she looks everyone Gabe brings around up and down, no matter their relation to him. The timer for the food in the oven had gone off though, so she rushed to take it out.

“Jack, call everyone in for dinner please!” She yelled from her place in the kitchen, and Jack obeyed.

When everyone was piled in and washing their hands, Jesse still had Julian on his shoulders. But, when Julian reached for Jack, Jesse handed him over without question. Julian laughed as Jack put the boy on his shoulders, smiling at the excitement from him.

“You know, Julian, I can let you in on a secret,” Jesse said, and Julian leaned down as far as he could so Jesse could talk slightly softer, but just loud enough for Jack to hear over the rustle of the family.

“The kids in school are gonna be jealous when they find out Jack Morrison is your uncle. This man has saved _countless_ lives, and made your Uncle Gabi very happy,” Jesse said, grinning. “No doubt in a few years you’ll be readin’ about him in your books.”

Julian oooh’d about that, and Jack turned a little red. “Don’t flatter me, McCree,” he brushed off, trying not to come off as passive aggressive to make a point to Izzy.

“Nah, now put the kid down and let his mama feed ‘im,” Jesse said, slapping Jack’s shoulder lightly with the back of his hand.

Out the corner of his eye, Jack saw Izzy giving him the _I told you so_ look Gabi always gave him when he was right. And she was.

And, with the way Jesse brought a different sort of liveliness to Gabe’s family, and the way he made Gabi proud, Jack couldn’t really be mad about that.

+++++

Jesse’s phone lockscreen was Mama Reyes, Gabi, and him all squished together for the photo on an LA beach. Jack was in the background, sunburnt.

His homescreen was a picture of his nephew napping with Izzy and Gabe.

The Blackwatch group chat name? M’Cree.

+++++

Gabe had proposed to Jack.

It was all anyone could talk about. Apparently he’d done it by the lake near Gabe’s family home, apparently the rings had topaz encasing the bands, apparently this, apparently that, _apparently_ Jesse was asked to be Gabe’s best man, no, _that_ Jesse? The one who makes puppydog eyes at them? _Yes_ that Jesse, and he accepted with complete enthusiasm.

Apparently, Jesse had transitioned from cigarettes to cigars, and sat with Ana and Angela, burning through a cigar in ten minutes flat. Apparently, Jesse was a tad stressed. _Apparently_ no matter how happy he was for Gabe and Jack, because no matter if he’s gone and fallen in love, loving someone means you want their happiness, _he was still hurt_ . And he hated that about himself. His Pa told him growing up, _mi Angelino, the best lesson you could learn is to be happy, happy with yourself, because the one person you can rely on forever is yourself._ In short, don’t place your happiness on one person, in this case, two, two who he sure as hell didn’t have a chance with to begin with. It didn’t matter. It _didn’t matter. It didn’t matter, because he’s Gabe’s best man and he’s going to stand up there at the altar but won’t be the one saying ‘I do.’_

_“I do.”_

_“I do.”_

_“I do.”_

Jesse put the cigar butt in the ashtray and put his face in the palm of his hands, muttering in incomprehensible Spanish. Gossip travels fast in the military because, apparently, boot camp doesn’t train the need for drama out of anyone. The drama of war isn’t enough, nah, it’s more fun to see what others are doing also.

“Jesse, it’s going to be okay,” Angela rubbed his back soothingly, pulling him into a hug. Jesse nodded, not wanted to say much more.

Jack, not really having much of anyone else he was close to completely besides Angela, asked Ana, his second in command, to be his best woman. And she accepted with complete enthusiasm as well, but also wasn’t in love with Gabe and Jack the way Jesse was. And Angela knew Jesse truly was happy for them, because he loved seeing them happy, but she understands he wishes he could be a different kind of happiness for the both of them.

“I _shouldn’t_ be upset, Angie, I don’t want to be selfish,” Jesse said, muffled by his hands. Ana nodded, understanding.

“Jesse, I don’t think you’re being selfish,” Angela smoothed down his hair. “Selfish would be you trying to ruin their relationship.”

“I agree with Angela,” Ana said, lighting a cigarette. “Jesse, have you thought about… moving on?”

“Ana, you _genius_ ,” Jesse drawled out, thick with sarcasm. “As if I haven’t tried that.”

“Don’t get sassy with me, McCree, I’ll put my foot up your ass,” the threat was empty and they all knew it, but it caused a slight chuckle from Jesse.

“Would feel a lot better than whatever I’m feeling right now,” Jesse mumbled.

“It’s called heartbreak, Jesse, everyone feels it now and then,” Angela hummed, continuing to comfort him.

Heartbreak was a bitch.

But he wouldn’t cry.

So, the world spun, Overwatch continued its peacekeeping reign. New members flooded in, leaving Jesse remembering names and taking them to bed, because that was his personality. He continued to visit Mama and Papa Reyes as often as he could when he wasn’t in Switzerland at the official Overwatch base. Miguel joined the medical branch. Angela kept a worried eye over Jesse to make sure he didn’t do anything irrational, but overtime her worry faded as he continued forward. Jack and Gabe were engaged, didn’t have a lot of time to decide a wedding date, but from what Jesse could tell Mama Reyes was ecstatic, as well as the whole family.

But her heart broke a bit for Jesse.

She gave him a small pendant, pink lemurian seed, to wear on the chain that belonged to his mother. The very next day she saw a glimpse of it and smiled.

_Gods, whatever you do, I wish for happiness for all of my friends._

Jack was incredibly anxious and excited, though.

He would go to Angela with questions about colors, questions about the flowers that should be around the tables, what should they do because “Mama Reyes wants a traditional Roman Catholic wedding for the both of them but Gabi isn’t exactly religious anymore and I’m a protestant-”

“Shh, Jack darling, _calm down,_ ” Angela would say, looking at her clipboard and back at the patient on the bed. “Your anxiety will affect my patients.”

“Sorry, Angie,” Jack sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I just. Want it to be perfect, y’know? One shot and all.”

“You’re okay, Jack,” She said, reading the vitals monitor and writing some more.

“...Do you think-”

“ _Jack._ I will kick you out of this room so _help me_ ,” Angela said, giving Jack a pointed look. “Yes. Gabe wants to marry you. _Yes. He is sure._ He wouldn’t have _asked_ if he wasn’t sure.”

Jack sighed in defeat, having to believe Angie without argument.

Gabriel went on about everything, though. He helped with planning, yes, and he helped calm Jack down and reassure him, but Blackwatch had an influx of operations to take care of and he couldn’t be around all the time. On top of that, Gabe was starting to have a neat (read: messy) pile of invoices waiting for him after every mission, which would take him a good portion of a day. So, once Jack and Gabe were engaged for a year, the hype surrounding it from media managed to die down a little.

Gabe sat in the foyer of the Overwatch base, looking at the holographic projection of Torbjorn’s suggestion for Angela’s staff. Angela was against the weaponization of her staff, even having it look like a weapon made her disagree immediately. He chewed on a piece of bread while thinking of a response to it, staring at the screen and just drawing blanks. It crossed his mind that Ana may like it, though. He sighed as another message about it popped up, rubbing his eyes. He had gotten four hours of sleep in the past two days at most, and after this invoice, he was going to take a very long nap.

Noises from down the hall brought him out of his headspace, though. It sounded like someone was pushed against a door, and that made Gabe curious. He didn’t really tolerate in-fighting unless it were training, so he slowly made his way over to the source of the noise. What he did, see, though, was the new member shoved against the door by Jesse. Normally Jesse didn’t instigate fights, he _hadn’t_ since he was about eighteen, but Gabe kept hidden and watched as Jesse’s look of aggression turned serious.

“I sleep with people on my own terms, Genji,” Jesse said. “And sorry for pushing you so harshly. But you needed to stay and _listen_ instead of running off and brooding somewhere.”

Okay. Interesting. Gabriel brought a piece of bread to his mouth, watching intently. Genji was nearly killed by his brother just a month or so before, and Angela had recreated an almost entirely prosthetic body for him, saving what little bit of human parts he had left. Everyone was praising Angela for her work, but from the looks of it, Genji was just frustrated with it all. He was being considered for recruitment by Overwatch while Angela made tweaks to his new body.

“I sleep with people because I _like_ sex. I don’t think a good lay is going to fix my emotional problems and, trust me, I used to try, but not now. And I _certainly_ don’t think my ass is able to magically heal everyone,” Jesse poked at Genji’s shoulder, continuing.

“Using sex to feel better about how you look won’t work, you need to work on that yourself. Now, if you’d like sex some other time when you aren’t trying to not hate yourself, I think my schedule will be open,” he grinned and yep, there’s the less serious Jesse.

“Thank you, Jesse. And I’m sorry if I was rude,” Genji responded, pulling himself away and walking down the hallway. When he was out of sight, Jesse turned his attention to the other end, giving a whistle.

“Gabi. _You can come out the shadows now,_ ” he coaxed in Spanish.

Gabe stepped from his hiding spot, still holding a piece of bread and looking at him expectantly. So what if he was caught eavesdropping? It’s his job to make sure his squadron was safe, after all, even off the battlefield. It was definitely not because he’s a sucker for drama.

“ _What happened there?_ ” He asked, tearing off a piece from the loaf and offering one to Jesse. As Jesse walked over and took the bread, popping it into his mouth, he explained.

“I think the kids got some emotional baggage from whatever the hell went down to make him… like that,” Jesse responded, chewing on the bread. “What kinda bread is this?”

“ _Homemade from Mama,_ ” Gabe responded. He swallowed though, and looked at Jesse. “You did good with him, though.”

Jesse had grown up in the past few years. He was more muscled from all the Blackwatch operations, fit but well fed because of Mama. His facial hair was grown in, and he had scars ranging from before Blackwatch to the times he dodged several bullets during one of the more dangerous Blackwatch operations. But more so, Jesse had learned a lot from Gabe fighting wise, advice wise, and from their friendship.

And Gabe was proud.

He just smiled at Jesse and the man looked confused, before he tore off another piece and shoved it in his mouth, turning away. “I gotta go talk to Ana about somethin’,” He rushed, before scurrying off and leaving Gabe with the loaf of bread and in thought. Strange, but not the first time Jesse had done that. Gabe just brushed it off and went back to the foyer, back to thinking of responses to Angela and Torbjorn.

+++++

Blackwatch had been assigned a mission in Santa Fe to take down a drug ring that was starting to rise in the Southwest, with a base in Santa Fe. At first, Gabe had thought it was the Deadlock Gang rising back to power, but that wasn’t the case as shown with further research. The sting went off without a hitch, with little to no problems. Almost all of the notorious members had been arrested, or were in the process of being found in other parts of the American southwest.

Which, of course, left the Blackwatch ops staying in Santa Fe. It was only until Gabe went to Jesse’s motel room that he had noticed the man was gone, in which _no_ he didn’t panic. He just frantically dialled Jesse’s number three times before he got an answer.

“ _Que?_ ” Jesse asked, a little muffled.

“ _Que? Que?!_ Where the hell are you?” Gabe yelled, unable to disguise the worry in his voice. The UN would kill him if he lost Jesse in the middle of Santa Fe, given his former affiliations.

“Ah, shit. You were napping when I came to tell you, uh…” Jesse paused, and Gabe waited for an answer. “You know, um. I’ll send you my location and you can come see.”

Gabe looked at his phone in confusion for a moment, before bringing it back to his ear. “Shady, McCree. Why are you an hour away?”

“Guess you’ll have to come see,” He responded, voice muffled again, but with chewing sounds. “See ya soon.”

Before Gabe could get a word in edgewise, Jesse had hung up. With a defeated sigh, Gabe pocketed his phone, grabbing the keys to the rental car and telling the rest of Blackwatch he’d be going out for a while. He was met with responses of “be careful” and he grinned, adoring the comradery of his squadron. But he hopped in the car, started it, and headed out.

He got further and further out of the town, with houses being further and further apart. The land was green and the air was hot and dry, and he had to squint driving down the road when the sun started setting. But he reached the location Jesse had sent, parking in front of a house. He noticed on the side a gate was open, and Gabe just assumed he should go through there. Gabe gently pushed the metal gate forward, looking at the overgrown grass and keeping a watch for snakes. He grew up in the southwest, too, he knows snakes hide in tall grass from personal experience.

But before him, the land was… large. And it hadn’t really clicked for Gabe why Jesse was there. He walked forward, looking for the man in question. But after a few minutes of walking, he saw Jesse ahead, sitting in front of two gravestones and on a blanket, a box of Chinese takeout on his side.

And he was talking to them.

Gabe tried to sneak forward quietly, but Jesse’s head turned when he stepped on a stick. He just shrugged and turned back to the two gravestones. “Come sit next to me,” he said, scooting over to the side and moving the takeout box. It seemed to be mostly empty, now, but that was to be expected, since it took Gabe an hour or so to get out there.

Gabe hesitated a moment before taking a spot next to Jesse, cross legged. There, he had a better view of gravestones, and read them each separately. On the left, the marble read _Luis DiAngelo McCree_ with a date of birth and death, and a bible verse carved below that. The right tombstone read _Joy DiAngelo McCree_ , with a date of birth but an earlier date of death than Luis’. Below that, was ‘ _Gone but not forgotten_.’ Gabe then looked back to Jesse expectantly, but Jesse shrugged.

“This is my Pa,” he pointed to Luis’ gravestone. “And this is my Ma.” He pointed to Joy’s. “Ma, Pa, this is Gabe. He’s my CO I was talking about.”

Gabe took a breath in. So these were Jesse’s parents.

“Hello,” Gabe said quietly. “It’s nice to meet you both.”

“Gabe’s family has been real kind to me. His mama treats me like her own,” Jesse started, adjusting his position from cross legged to pulling his knees to his chest. Gabe noticed his hat was off and to the side, hair pulled back to keep the hair from sticking to his neck.

“Mama has considered Jesse family for five years now,” Gabe said to the grave stones. He felt a little silly, but this seemed important to Jesse.

“I haven’t replaced either of you, I just… I have another family, now, but you two are my blood,” Jesse said quietly.

“I don’t think that they’d be mad. I think they’d be happy you have us to watch your ass,” Gabe nudged, giving a small laugh. Jesse snorted, rolling his eyes.

“I’m just sorry it took me thirteen years to visit,” Jesse began. “I figured… after I had gotten into the Deadlock Gang, my parents wouldn’t be proud. I wouldn’t visit until I made them proud. And then Blackwatch came around, and I figured us coming to Santa Fe was a sign… it was time.” Jesse took a breath and let it out, putting his forehead on his arm. “I couldn’t avoid seeing my parents.”

“...They’d be proud,” Gabe responded, reaching his hand out. He hesitated a moment before placing it on Jesse’s back, rubbing lightly. Jesse’s head shot up as he looked at Gabe, eyes wide in shock. But Gabe kept rubbing, and kept looking at the tombstones.

“Jesse was one of my fastest learners. He’s saved my life more than once, and he’s going to be my best man. You have a lot to be proud of,” Gabe said, still rubbing Jesse’s back.

“A lot to be proud of,” Jesse echoed.

“A _lot_ to be proud of,” Gabe said, more sternly this time.

“...He said it didn’t hurt when he died,” Jesse said quietly. “I watched him die. I’m the reason he died. But he didn’t blame me, he never blamed me once. Just kept saying _mi Angelino, it will be fine._ ”

Gabe was about to respond until he saw Jesse tearing up, and rubbing at his eyes. “Gabi, I… he never blamed me for a single thing. Not for Ma. Not for himself. He just wanted the best for me, and I joined a gang in return. I didn’t visit him for thirteen years…” Jesse paused. “Didn’t visit him and Ma for thirteen years in return.”

“Jesse…” Gabe said quietly, moving closer and wrapping his arm around the mans shoulders. He brought him into a side hug, rubbing his thumb gently over Jesse’s shoulder. “He would be proud now. He and Joy would be proud of the man you’ve become.”

Jesse let out a quiet sound, something along the lines of a sob, but Gabe just shushed him gently and continued. “Your Pa understood that you were a child, and children make mistakes. He didn’t want your last memory of him to be anger, Jesse. He wanted you to remember how much he loved you. And I would bet everything I have that you haven’t doubted his love for you since.”

Jesse was quiet, except for sounds of sniffing and heavy breathing. But Gabe continued to hold him for a moment, remaining quiet until Jesse was ready to speak again. He didn’t know the pain of losing parents, but he knew what it was like to lose someone close. He’d been in the military for this long, after all, he’s seen a death or two. But, it still didn’t compare to losing family. And Gabe saw his family, including Jack and Jesse, as his everything.

It took another moment or two before Jesse was able to collect himself, rubbing at his eyes and wiping his nose with the hem of his serape. Gabe didn’t comment on it though, now wouldn’t be the appropriate time. Jesse stayed for another minute before standing up, and offering his hand to help Gabe. He took Jesse’s hand, hoisting himself up and stepping off the blanket.

“Do you wanna see the house?” Jesse asked, picking up the blanket and takeout bag.

“I’d love that,” Gabe said, smiling. Maybe this was Jesse’s way of healing.

Jesse carried the bag and blanket in his arms, leading Gabe all the way back to the house. Gabe’s legs were a little sore from sitting for so long, but he didn’t complain, because he was more than glad to see Jesse open up to someone that wasn’t his mama for once. And once they reached the house, Jesse kicked over a small stone, setting down his things taking a key and jiggling the lock open. He finally pushed the door open, not letting Gabe stare too long at the blood stains on the concrete and-

When Gabe stepped inside, there was dried blood on the wooden floors still. When Jesse flipped on the lights, it became suddenly, very clear, that the police had never cleaned the house up, and Jesse literally hadn’t returned since the day he left.

On the front of the door, there was a small bloodied handprint, and blood still stained on to the golden doorknob. When he looked down, there were footprints leading to one large stain of blood, all right there within direct line of sight when one stepped into the house. On the ground was the phone, still covered in it, and in the living room was the couch with minor stains.

It was very rare Gabe ever felt sick, but for the first time in a while, the sight of blood made him ill. And it was mainly because of a factor of about a hundred things, but there were at least two that stuck out in his mind.

One: Not only was this the blood of Jesse’s father, but it was the blood of a thirteen year old Jesse. And with how young Jesse looked at seventeen, he imagined he looked much younger at thirteen. The image of him trying to apply pressure to his fathers bullet wounds while bleeding himself wouldn’t leave his head. And yet, Jesse stood looking around the house, as if the blood was nonexistent.

Two: It was always protocol to clean up and collect DNA after a murder. But for some reason (Gabe knew the reason _he knew the exact reason_ ) the police never did that, the data analysts never came. They never bothered to come out to the home and clean it up, make it look like a home, and while Jesse had several reasons to not return until now, the law enforcement did _not._ And that, that in itself made Gabe suck in a breath of anger.

But Jesse stood. Jesse stood and just looked around, giving Gabe an expectant look. “You’re letting the heat in, Gabi.”

“Jesse, I hate to tell you this, but there’s blood on the ground. The heat isn’t what I’m really thinkin’ about,” Gabe responded, maybe a little too harshly, but maybe it was the anger that the law enforcement nearly left Jesse for dead, it seemed. The amount of blood would certainly suggest that.

“Yeah. AC won’t work because generator ain’t hooked to it, but the lights are, and we’re lucky that the generator works so shut the door. And I know about the blood. Most of it’s mine, y’know,” Jesse turned around, looking out at the living room. “Feels like time’s stopped.”

Gabe looked at Jesse, across from him and acting as though this were a casual sight. He then looked down to the blood, then back at Jesse. But Jesse just stepped forward to the living room to look at a painting of a woman hanging on the wall, to which Gabe assumed was Joy.

“Ma was beautiful. ‘Nd then I got my Pa’s boring eyes,” Jesse scoffed, and Gabe walked slowly over to Jesse.

“...Are you alright?” Gabe asked, not wanting to cross boundaries, so keeping his hands to himself.

“I mean. Everything’s kinda moving in slow motion, and I can’t really feel my hands, but y’know,” Jesse shrugged, slowly going to sit next to a smaller bloodstain.

Gabe decided that enough was enough, and walked over to sit next to Jesse. The man’s breaths were shaky, and Jesse didn’t really know what else to do besides shrug when Gabe sat down. “I’m here, you’re okay,” Gabe said quietly.

“Mhmm,” Jesse said, feeling the ground around him.

“Hey, Jesse-- breathe and focus on something like a familiar texture,” Gabe tried to coax him, noticing the way Jesse was starting to space out. But Jesse ended up leaning on him again, as he had done just minutes before, and was feeling at the fabric of his serape.

Gabe tried to adjust the two of them around, to where Jesse was able to lay down more on him if need be. With the way Jesse was slumping, though, the mans head ended up on his chest, as he laid in an uncomfortable position against Gabe. But Jesse didn’t seem to mind, as his breathing began to steady a little more.

“Your heart. It’s calm,” Jesse muttered, curling up more. Gabe rolled his eyes.

“One of us has to be,” Gabe responded.

Jesse grunted in return, taking a deep breath in. Gabe sat there with him for a bit, making sure Jesse was controlling his breathing. He would remind him of the time every few minutes or so, to make sure Jesse didn’t lose track, and that seemed to help some. But he just kept laying there, listening to Gabe’s heart, and Gabe was sure it was calming in the sense it was steady, and he seemed to be counting them out under his breath.

After a little longer, Jesse was able to sit up. He shook his hands out a little, and took one more deep breath. “I think I’m alright now.”

“Good,” Gabe said, feeling a little strange now that there wasn’t a heavy weight on him. But he got up, dusted his pants off and helped Jesse up this time.

Before Jesse really had the opportunity to apologize for anything, Gabe gave a once-over of the room, and decided, “I think we should clean this place up.”

“Wait, what?” Jesse asked, looking at Gabe, bewildered.

“Where are your cleaning supplies?” Gabe asked, turning to Jesse and looking him in the eyes. “I think we should clean the place up. Wipe the past away.”

Jesse stared at him for another moment before laughing and shaking his head. “There’s a convenience store about thirty minutes up, we can get new supplies,” he replied.

Gabe motioned for Jesse to head to the car, because it was still only afternoon and this was to help the younger man out. Once they got in and buckled up, Gabe pulled out of the driveway, and listened to Jesse’s instructions to the store. Jesse seemed to be doing better, though, since he was starting to crack jokes and figure out the radio stations, before remembering the radio was bluetooth and he could link his phone to it. And then Gabe was annoyed because Jesse’s music taste is bad, so he made Jesse use his phone instead.

“There’s a lot of Ricky Martin,” Jesse commented, snorting.

“Blame Mama and Izzy,” Gabe said, flipping on his blinker and pulling into the store parking lot.

“Yeah, they’re at fault for your music taste,” Jesse said sarcastically.

Gabe took his phone away before he got out the car, with Jesse following. The convenience store was just that, a convenience store. But while they were there, Gabe picked up some food for dinner, assuming they’d be at the house for a while. That, and Gabe _really_ didn’t want to make another trip into town until he absolutely had to. It was a pain in the ass to have to set out an hour to just go to the store, and he really didn’t know how Jesse managed when he was a kid.

But the basket got full, and they checked out, and were on their way back to the house. Once they were back, Gabe was going to put the food away, until he opened the fridge and slammed it shut again. Because, really, Jesse wasn’t kidding when he said he didn’t return after it all, and rotting food was evidence of that.

“Jesse! _Come help me clean the fridge!_ ” Gabe yelled as Jesse stepped inside with the last of the groceries, and Jesse groaned.

“Is it gross? It’s probably gross. Gabi, I’ll clean-”

“You’ll help me clean the fridge,” Gabe said, popping his head from the kitchen. “Get in here. And help me clean.”

“ _You sound like Mama,_ ” Jesse huffed, setting the groceries down with the rest.

“ _You sound like you’re whining,_ ” Gabe said, grabbing a trash bag from a  new box. He decided any tupperware containers needed to be tossed, because, nothing in that fridge could be saved at this point.

The fridge was disgusting. And cleaning it alone took an hour and a half, because they had to take out the shelves and spray those down. After that was the pantry, and after getting rid of a couple of mice, Gabe was able to clear out the food from that. But, that was another hour, and by the time they got around to scrubbing the floors, Gabe was beginning to slightly regret suggesting they cleaned the house. They had an entire second floor to deal with, also, and Gabe didn’t know what to expect in that area. But Jesse just assured him there were only two bedrooms and a media room, so it wouldn’t be so hard. He worked diligently to scrub the blood off the floors, breaking a sweat until it was shining. Gabe had taken the couch cushions and scrubbed those off, working on vacuuming and deep cleaning the furniture once Jesse had moved up to working on the media room. They had to throw away whatever electronics didn’t work, which meant an old TV, all of the cable, the computer, anything that they almost died trying to turn on.

Gabe had joined him upstairs when Jesse finished up the media room, sweating his ass off and hooking up an old fan they found in a closet that for some reason had still worked. Then, Jesse had stopped in front of a door, looking at it and frowning. Gabe walked over with a bucket in hand, cocking one eyebrow up. “Something wrong?”

Jesse shook his head. “My old room,” he said, opening the door and revealing a room that definitely belonged to a thirteen year old boy. There were posters strung about the room, some peeling off now because they had been stuck there so long. The bed was unmade, there was a desk with a few books and notebooks stacked on it, an old tablet, some candles. A rosary hung off a knob on the bed frame, similar to one he had as a child.

“You’re Catholic?” he asks, for some reason that was the first thing on his mind.

“Pa was, yeah,” Jesse said, setting down the buckets. “Not religious myself anymore.”

“Understandable,” Gabe nodded.

Jesse gave a once over at some of the omnic posters and snorted. “And I guess we were wrong about those. Though the crisis didn’t hit us till a lot later,” he shrugged, going to strip the bed and toss it in the laundry pile. For a room that belonged to a thirteen year old, it was surprisingly already clean. Then again, Gabe had noticed McCree would keep areas around him semi-neat.

Gabe didn’t say much unless Jesse did, helping him dust surfaces off and toss away anything unneeded. He had discovered the books and notebooks were old school supplies, things Jesse was working on before he didn’t return. The house felt haunted in its own way, on Jesse’s nightstand was a picture of he and his father, during Christmas it seemed. A portrait of his mom on his dresser. Jesse started clearing out clothes and putting them into bags to be donated later, laughing at things he had randomly shoved into his dresser. Old library books way overdue, empty boxes of food, some change.

Jesse’s past was a ghost house now, he was the sole heir to it. Nobody ever passed by the house and wondered why the lawn was overgrown. Nobody came by and tried to figure out the stains on the door, now removed thanks to Jesse, nobody stopped to ask. Nobody asked because it was normal to see empty homes after the Omnic crisis. They just assumed.

Gabe was feeling sick again, thinking too much when Jesse dusted his hands off. “It’s gettin’ late. You can start dinner while I finish up,” Jesse shooed, and Gabe shook his head.

“I’ll come help you with your father’s room,” he said, picking cleaning supplies back up and heading out of Jesse’s room. It was emptier now, the sheets would be thrown into the wash (surprisingly enough, the water was still clean when they checked) so it wouldn’t much longer until they finished cleaning. The windows were all wiped down, minus the entirety of Luis’ room.

“You don’t need to do that, Gabi, it’s almost eight-” Jesse was cut off by Gabe shaking his head.

“No. Helping you finish, then you’re helping me cook,” Gabe said, tossing one of the dirty rags to Jesse and hearing him sigh.

“ _Cabron,_ ” Jesse muttered as he followed Gabe, visible irritation setting in. It was probably from the heat.

“ _Watch it,_ ” Gabe had retorted, walking over to the room just a little down the hall, near the stairs. Jesse had said earlier there was a bathroom attached to this room as well, but that wouldn’t take long. From the looks of it Jesse’s father had kept most things neat. He waited by the door for Jesse, gesturing with his head to the door. Jesse gave a nod and opened it, observing.

It was a neat room. There was a king sized bed pushed against the wall, with a dresser facing it. A television sat on the dresser, a nightstand next to the bed, and a couple paintings hung around. Most seemed to be of his own family, and then some with just Jesse, wearing the too large serape originally made for him.

“Sentimental old man,” Jesse said under his breath, going to strip the bed to wash those sheets later.

This time they were able to work quickly, because it was evident that Jesse’s dad had been a very neat man. The bathroom hadn’t taken long, they just tossed out old medicines and products, cleaned out the tub and toilet, and wiped down the sinks. Jesse stared at the paintings when they neared completion, while Gabe worked on scrubbing down the windows and finishing last minute dusting.

“He’d get our pictures taken and then commission an artist. Pa was pretty insistent on supporting the arts. I think one of his closest friends was an artist and that’s why,” he said, looking at one of a vineyard.

“The arts are important. It keeps culture alive,” Gabe chided, tossing a rag into the bucket. “Do you want to bring a painting back with us?”

Jesse looked at him in bewilderment, before shaking his head. “No, no. Can’t do that. Don’t want the guys making fun of me for looking even younger.”

Gabe shook his head, though. “They won’t do that. The painting of Luis and Joy on their wedding day, the one where he’s dipping her. We can wrap that and take it back for you to keep. It’s not too big,” he said.

Jesse’s gaze turned soft though, and he frowned, thinking about the offer. “That’d be nice, I guess,” he muttered, picking up the sheets to bring them to the laundry room. “I’ll grab it when we head out tomorrow. It’s gettin’ too late to head back to the motel,” he said, noticing it was almost nine p.m.

“Yeah, alright, fair point,” Gabe nodded. “These roads are too dangerous to drive on at night.”

“And I’m fucking starving Gabi, can we eat now?” he begged, walking downstairs with the man and dumping everything by the steps, going to collapse on the couch.

“I can make dinner, yeah,” Gabe waved off. It wasn’t going to take him long, maybe an hour at most. He could shave off fifteen minutes if Jesse helped, but the man seemed to be dying of near heat exhaustion on the couch, sweating through his shirt and having the serape tossed over the arm of the couch.

“Fucking thank God,” Jesse sighed, taking in the air the overhead fan provided. It wasn’t much, but it seemed to be enough to keep him satisfied. Gabe shook his head, wishing he had brought extra clothes, but Luis seemed to have some that Jesse could wear, and he could just wash his later that night. Gabe pulled off his shirt though, now that the night was setting in the heat was sinking to the lower levels of the house, making Gabe sweat even more. He tossed the shirt to the side, going to the fridge and opening it. He stared for a moment, embracing the cold, before pulling out the dinner ingredients and getting started on cooking.

Jesse couldn’t stop staring.

Given the fact this was the man Jesse had definitely been crushing over for a very, very long time now, and said man was cooking in his childhood home, shirtless, after helping him clean the entire place without question, of course he would stare. And of course his mouth would go dry. And of course Gabe was more focused on the fact he couldn’t find the Adobo they’d bought earlier. And of course Jesse was taking this moment in his life to thank whatever God happened to be out there, which at this moment seemed to be Gabe’s back muscles, or Gabe himself, because he would gladly get on his knees and worship this man if he were asked to at that moment.

Gabe kept cooking and Jesse fished his phone from his pocket, rubbing excess water residue off the screen and scrolling through any unread messages. Seemed like the Blackwatch chat had changed titles again, this time to “Gabe and Jesse’s Day Off,” but if he scrolled up enough he could see that it was “McCree’s Personal Harem,” making him laugh a bit. Other than that, nothing new had been going on. But instead of the house smelling of cleaning products and the couple of candles they bought, the scent of chicken and greenbeans was filling the house, making Jesse’s stomach growl. He wondered if it would be long before the food was done, but there was also another issue. Being that he was back to lounging and staring at Gabe while he was in the kitchen, Jesse was half hard and embarrassed about it, but at least he still had pants on and could easily hide it.

Not long after, Gabe had called out that the food was ready, and Jesse sat with him on the island, cross legged and devouring the food. Since Gabe was a super soldier, there really weren’t any leftovers, just enough for the two of them to eat for the night. Jesse didn’t have much to say, just out of pure exhaustion. Once he’d gotten off the island and went to wash the dishes, he couldn’t really keep his eyelids open. He finished the dishes, walked over to the couch, and collapsed back down. “Bed time,” he said into the pillow, clinging on to it.

“There’s clean sheets on the bed in the room down here. We can sleep there,” Gabe said, pulling Jesse back up, and Jesse almost choked on _we._

“We?” He asked, confusion etched into his tired eyes.

“We,” Gabe said, walking over to the room. “Bed is big enough for the both of us, figured it’s comfier than a couch,” Gabe shrugged. “The sheets from your dads room are still drying. Your old bed is too small.”

Jesse nodded. That was logical. He followed Gabe to the bedroom, praying silently that he wouldn’t wake up with morning wood next to his CO. They were in the military, both were grown men, they had seen each other unclothed many times, why was it affecting Jesse now? Was it because he opened up about something for once in his life? He needed a smoke. But he also really needed sleep, and he was already taking off his clothes, stripping to his underwear and crawling into the bed.

“You sure Jack’s okay with this?” Jesse asked, throwing the duvet over himself.

“Sharing a bed isn’t cheating, Jesse,” Gabe sighed. “He’ll be fine. I don’t get upset when he sleeps with Angela when I’m not there. He’ll be in town in another day or so.”

Right. There was more to take care of in Santa Fe, a rising terrorist group who called themselves Talon was trying to establish some name in Santa Fe, pushing the rest of the Deadlock Gang out. Jack was supposed to help with this one, along with Blackwatch in the shadows for the dirtier parts of the mission.

“Alright,” Jesse hummed, melting into the bed. This was a lot better than the motel beds, that was for sure. He felt the left side of the bed dip under Gabe’s weight, the man rustling to get under the sheets completely. Their backs faced each other for a moment, before Gabe turned around and threw an arm over Jesse. He stiffened a little at the contact before just giving in, holding on to the pillow and falling asleep.

They left the house in Santa Fe the next day, Jesse putting the painting of his mother and father on their wedding day in the back of the car, and locking the house up. He’d make a copy of the key later.

The squadron didn’t say much about the two returning. Jesse didn’t say much about waking up with a very tired Gabriel cuddling him, because Jesse if didn’t do cuddling after sex, why would he cuddle for platonic reasons? Gabe didn’t make any mention of it, when he had woken up he’d let go of Jesse and felt a strange tug at his heart, but ultimately ignored it.

Jack showed up the next day, holding Gabe’s hand when nobody was looking at either of them. The Blackwatch group chat name changed right back to “Strike Commander Pettison” for seemingly unknown reasons, until Jesse could see the peak of a few hickies on Gabe’s neck. He supposed it was because Jack missed him while he was gone.

In any case, Gabe and Jesse were sent off to scout out a location that they could get one of their spies to lead Talon to, and that would have been easy enough if the building they needed to check out was actually empty. It was a former Deadlock Gang base, one of the ones Jesse knew better because he lived in it most often. The building sat outside of the Santa Fe city limit, looking to be a fairly sturdy abandoned hospital, likely from the Omnic Crisis. Much of it was redesigned and repurposed to accommodate gang activity, until the sting operations by Blackwatch kicked most of them out.

Most of them.

Except one member who Jesse had the unfortunate luck of running into when he and Gabe were trying to break in.

Jesse hadn’t seen any hint of activity from anyone when he had brought Gabe over, but the moment they heard footsteps down one of the halls, Jesse’s peacekeeper was out and so were Gabe’s shotguns. When the steps got closer, Jesse instantly recognized the face of one of his former gang members. The man looked worse for wear, nine years hadn’t been so kind to him, covered in scars and now sporting a prosthetic leg. Jesse had a few choice memories of him running off right before the sting to push weapons to the east coast.

“Jesse McCree,” he had said out of some shock, some curiosity.

“The fuck you doin’ here?” Jesse spat, pointing his revolver at the mans chest. “Not a step closer.”

Gabe couldn’t help but notice the instant change in the exterior of Jesse, the way his accent dipped and sounded more aggressive. His position was defensive, but the man had his hands up and seemed to not be armed at all. Gabe scanned him over to see if there was any chance he’d be hiding something, of course there was, but it didn’t seem like there were any weapons besides the knife in his pocket.

“McCree, gun down,” Gabe ordered. “And you. This building was abandoned, what are you doing here?”

Jesse hesitated before lowering his gun, frowning at the gang member and keeping his eyes locked on the man. “He’s with Deadlock, don’t fuckin’ trust him,” Jesse warned.

Gabriel glanced back at Jesse, confused at where the hostility was coming from. He hadn’t seen Jesse with this much of an itch for a fight since his early training days, and didn’t seem to expect it now, given how he seemed to be much more level headed in most battlefield situations. But this wasn’t the battlefield, this was a puzzle piece of Jesse’s past showing up when he didn’t expect it, and he looked volatile.

“I’ve got an idea of what to do, thanks,” Gabe said, pointing one of his shotguns at the man. “You. Talk, what’s your name?”

“Oli,” Jesse filled in. “Oliver,” he immediately corrected himself.

“I asked him, McCree,” Gabe said, glaring at Jesse, then back to the man who was snickering now.

“He’s got you whipped, eh, McCree?” Oliver grinned, until Gabe went to glare at him.

“You answer me, and pretend my subordinate isn’t here,” Gabe demanded, personality switching to military CO. “Why are you here?”

Oliver seemed to keep his hands up and answer, but Jesse’s mind was lost in a haze of anger and memories.

_Being picked up by the gang at fourteen, having sex when he was fifteen, the fact he’d killed his first man when kids his age were worried about going to high school in the fall, the fact he had no other choice but to sign his life away to a life of crime until he was given the option of prison or the military, a man offering him that spot, a man sharing a bottle of whiskey with him and showing him how to traffic weapons, a man ditching town before the sting operation, a man with a familiar English accent that irritated him, a man that irritated him in general._

Jesse’s gun was still out, and Gabe was still asking questions.

“Why are you here?”

“Seeing if I can ransack the place for any leftover weapons, place to hideout between jobs.”

“Is that all?”

“Swear on my mum.” A beat. “Who ya really with?”

“Overwatch,” Gabe half-lied.

“Oh,” the man chuckled. “Damn, McCree, you’re the only one to get off after all that, and you’re just in a gang with a fancier title?”

Jesse’s gun was back up, and Gabe’s voice was harsh this time. “McCree. _Gun down._ ” He commanded.

“You lot kill, just legally. Thought you were gonna go straight?” Oliver’s gaze looked as though he were looking for a fight. “And you. What made ya decide on this mutt?”

Jesse snapped, shooting at Oliver’s knees, eyes harsh and cold. He didn’t need this right now, didn’t need to confront a separate part of his past just a few days after going to his father’s grave. Oliver had immediately dropped down, blood soaking through his pants and clutching both of his legs, tears streaming down his face. He was yelling obscenities now, as Jesse spun the chamber of his revolver and stepped closer-

-Until Gabe grabbed his serape and yanked him back. “The fuck did I just say, Jesse?” he yelled, turning to block Jesse’s view of Oliver, and instead force him to look at Gabe. “You don’t fire when I tell you guns down. You put your gun down, and you _wait for my next command._ ”

“He fucking pushed it!” Jesse yelled. “He shoulda been caught in that sting as well! Fucking got me in the gang!”

“I saved your _life_ you piece of shit! You woulda been dead in six months if we’d not given you that spot!” Oliver yelled, still screaming in pain partially from his knees. “Jesus _fuck!_ ”

“You didn’t save my fucking life!” Jesse screamed, trying to push past Gabe. “I wasted my life there! I almost got sent to prison at seventeen!”

Gabe pushed Jesse back more with his forearm. “Get out. Go watch outside the building for anybody else in case he’s not alone, and I’ll deal with you _later,_ ” he hissed, lowering his arm.

They had a staredown for a moment before Jesse broke the gaze, stepping to the side of Gabe and shooting Oliver right in his crotch. “Now I’ll wait,” he spat back at Gabe, walking the opposite direction, so the sounds of Oliver’s screaming became quieter.

Gabe didn’t have it in him to argue with Jesse and just let him walk away. Once Jesse was out of sight, he turned on his heel, walking towards the wailing man. Gabe crouched down, taking one of the shotguns and pointing it at the mans head. “Where’s your phone?” Gabe asked, pressing the barrel harder against his head.

Oliver could barely choke out a response before fumbling towards his pocket, and Gabe clicked one of the guns to his side before snatching the phone, looking to be a burner as he expected. He looked back at Oliver, getting closer to his face. “I should kill you right now since I don’t think anyone would miss you. But I’ve got a few more questions I gotta ask while my apprentice is out,” he said, tone low and threatening. “And you’re gonna answer ‘em all.”

Oliver whimpered and nodded, tears streaming down his face and hands and pants covered in blood. Gabe was going to take his sweet time if he felt like it. “Now. What did you do to make my normally calm and level headed apprentice lash out?”

Oliver was silent. Gabe pistol whipped him, making him cry out. “Answer me.”

“Fuck, mate!” Oliver screamed, squeezing his eyes. “He was a fucktoy! Made him beg for scraps of food!” He yelling had turned to strange laughter at that point shaking his head. “Picked the kid up and gave him the location of the guy who took his daddy out. Gave him a position. Got my dick sucked while I was at it, he was a fairly alright lay. Sure you would know by now,” he laughed, and Gabe felt his stomach drop.

“You raped him?”

“Misheard me, mate,” he drawled out. “We were starvin’ him. He offered to suck my dick. I accepted. Taught him to kill, taught him to export weapons. You tellin’ me you haven’t gotten some of that?”

Gabe stood up, disgusted and opening the phone. “I’ve got some conditions before I call this hospital, piece of shit.” His foot hovered over Oliver’s neck, stepping down with a little pressure on his windpipe. “You don’t tell anyone who we are. You leave Santa Fe once you’re healed up, and you don’t fucking return. You don’t think of Jesse. You don’t entertain the idea of someone _like_ Jesse.”

Oliver nodded, panic setting into his eyes when Gabe pressed his boot down harder. “Good.”

Gabe thought about shooting him in the stomach so the man could bleed out before the ambulance could get there. But he looked at the amount of blood soaking through, and it seemed like the bullet in his left leg was actually right above his knee, hitting one of the main arteries. He decided against it, calling the number to the ambulance and letting them take their sweet time. If they took long reaching a house on the outskirts of Santa Fe, they’d take a while reaching an abandoned building on the outskirts of Santa Fe. Gabe dropped the phone on Oliver’s face, deciding the mission was officially over, and they’d have to pick a different location from one of the other scouts once they returned. For now, Gabe walked down the same hall Jesse had, pushing his way through an old, heavy metal door and seeing Jesse burn through a cigar. He was sitting cross legged against the wall, eyes red and face a little blotchy.

Gabe didn’t say anything, he helped him up and led Jesse to the SUV, making sure to leave before the ambulance could arrive. He’d have to make sure that Jack could get everything that happened there covered up, just in case any of the bullets traced back to Jesse’s gun. The car was silent, no radio playing, no conversation, just a drive for the first twenty minutes along a road that felt too damn long.

“You disobeyed my orders,” Gabe said, no longer able to stand the silence.

“Don’t care,” Jesse said, feet on the dash and leaning back in his seat.

“I know,” Gabe sighed. “I won’t punish you. Because he told me what he did.”

“That’s none of your business,” Jesse spat, aggression thick in his voice again. “Doesn’t matter. He was right, I woulda starved had he not picked me up.”

Gabe was quiet, but he gripped the wheel tighter. “He was a piece of shit.”

“He ruined me, Gabi, he _was_ a piece of shit,” The younger man admitted. “He’s right, but I hate him. Fucked me in the head. Starved me off for a decent lay, fucker made fun of me for not having a family. He was two years older than me and had a family that loved him, bailed him outta prison, he was someone bad who did bad things because it was fun.”

Gabe could hear the crack in Jesse’s voice, and his thoughts lingered to a boy he had bought a bowl of chili for because of a dare from Ana just a month or so after Jesse joined Blackwatch, someone who hoarded food in the mini fridge in the barracks because he didn’t know when he’d get another decent meal. Someone who looked on the verge of tears whenever someone cooked for him every time, always thanking them.

“Shit’s not changed for me, Gabi, I still kill people, I still beg for scraps.”

“Scraps?” Gabe asked.

“I still sleep around. I _like_ being unhappy and alone, before I was paid I’d still have sex for food, remember?”

“ _Why were you waiting on Liao anyways?” Gabe asked, observing how Jesse was eating without restriction now that Gabe has offered to buy him his meals until he got paid._

_“Sex,” Jesse admitted, grin hiding something different in him. Gabe didn’t ask after that._

“I remember,” Gabe nodded. “But that’s the past.”

“History repeats itself,” Jesse argued.

“ _Jesse,_ ” Gabe snapped. “Listen to me. When I picked you up nine years ago, you were a ball of spitfire who argued with me and insulted me for going to college. _College._ Now I overhear you telling other members to not use sex to cope with their emotional problems, you’re polite as all hell to most others now which I _never_ imagined would happen when you told me to shove both my shotguns up my ass, and you’ve grown up.” Gabe took a breath and switched on his blinker, making a turn to get back on the freeway. “You’ve grown up. You make the right decisions most of the time.”

Jesse remained quiet as Gabe spoke, silent tears streaming down his face for what felt like the millionth time that week. “I’m not a mutt to you, am I, Gabi?”

“No,” Gabe shook his head. “You’re one of my dearest friends, Jesse. You’re my family. I’m proud of you.”

The rest of the drive back was quiet.

Gabe told Jack what happened, and Jack managed to get it covered up immediately. He gave Jesse a sympathetic look as the man passed by, on his way to see Angela about something. Jesse felt a little weird after it, but shook it off, and Gabe squeezed Jack’s hand.

Jack knows what it’s like to be hungry, to be mocked for having less, to be told he was nothing more than maybe a few features of himself. To be made fun of for worn down clothes, to be with someone you love holding their hand as they take their last breath. He briefly wonders if he and Jesse were more alike than he had originally thought, and rubbing his thumb over Gabe’s hand. Gabe had a habit of helping those he saw suffering, those he saw who needed someone to look to and and someone to depend on. Gabe took people’s outer shells over their hearts and broke them down, brick by brick until he’d unpacked his boxes and made a spot for himself there. After Gabe had come back and explained what happened, Jack nodded and understood why Gabe would get defensive over Jesse.

But Gabe was tired. And Jack decided to coax him to bed for the night, in preparation of the next day.

 


	2. I Fell Into Your Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Talk about my feelings, I don't wanna, fuck that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> local loose end: im just debating something in my head whether or not to split the fic to three parts rather than two,  
> HARMICIST: :3c  
> local loose end: :3c means three doesnt it,  
> HARMICIST: yes
> 
> thank u to alex who helped me write a lot of this. also making me write this in general, god, im so sorry if the pacing sux the second half, it was hard to push out! but i didn't wanna make you lot wait another month. it's 1:30 and ill edit mistakes LATER. the majority was edited, anyways.
> 
> note for exhibitionism at some point. woops! kinkshame me, i guess. don't worry the next part will be better.

The mission didn’t take long to go south.

Talon quickly realized what was happening once one of the spies had accidentally given away some of the members positions, leading to a firefight and a display of Talon’s true skill. They were still a little unorganized, but had damn good aim with their weapons. When Jesse was getting ambushed on his right, one of the agents had shot his left elbow, leaving Jesse’s arm in searing pain. His left arm was completely incapacitated now, and bleeding fairly heavily. In a quick motion, he had pistol whipped the agent stupid enough to get close to him, shooting the person right between their eyes. He aimed at the person coming up next to him, taking another shot at their cheek, grimacing at the blood splattering. He ran, ducking for cover from stray bullets, trying to find an area to hide. Once he spotted a stack of boxes, he rolled over, reloading his peace keeper and clutching his arm.

“Dammit,” he muttered, looking at the blood loss. The adrenaline had kicked in at that point, and Jesse figured he could still get around as long as he was needed. He couldn’t stop fighting now, not yet, Morrison would kick his ass. In a split second of thinking, he threw off his tan serape, knotting it tightly around the bullet wound, hissing at the way it stung. That was his bad arm, anyways, from years ago when he got shot.

He pushed himself back up, getting on top of the boxes and searching for Gabe in the mess of people.  _ Maybe if he didn’t wear all black, it’d be easier to find him, _ he thought. If he found Gabe, he’d find Jack as well. And lo and behold, Gabe had kicked back a Talon agent and shot them down, yelling something at Jack and running in a different direction to take care of three more agents that had been trying to sneak around. When Jack turned around to scan the room, it left him vulnerable, and Jesse saw someone seize the opportunity to sneak up on Jack, pointing their pistol right at the Strike Commander’s head. Gabe had turned around in that exact moment, eyes wide at the sight of Jack with a gun to his head.

Jesse didn’t hesitate to focus in the moment, getting a clean headshot before the agent could pull the trigger.

Jack whipped around and saw Jesse give a mock salute with his revolver, hopping down from the boxes and running off to go take care of two more agents who were going after one of the men in Blackwatch. Jack didn’t have time to signal a thank you, instead opting to go ahead and finish up with the others. In just a few minutes, most of the Talon agents were either dead or had fled the scene, tails tucked between their legs. Most of everyone was covered in blood, being checked for injuries by the medics on standby, and helicopters were already on their way.

Jesse sauntered his way up to Gabe and Jack, who were sitting together and panting, worn out from the adrenaline rushes they’d both had. Despite being super soldiers, an adrenaline rush like that could knock the energy out of anyone. His arm was in extreme pain at that point, and he was clutching it, but grinning at the other two. “Well, that could have gone better.”

Gabe’s eyes flickered down to Jesse’s arm, the serape he had tied it with now soaked in blood. His eyes widened once he noticed just how thickly it was tied, and how much blood had soaked through.

“Medic!” Gabe called, a doctors head popping up from a crowd and coming over.

“I’m fffine,” Jesse slurred, waving Gabe off before falling down on the ground. “Alright. May have lied. Shit, this hurts worse than the first time.”

Gabe couldn’t understand why Jesse hadn’t just found a spot and hidden after that, much less how he was making such clean shots. He’d gotten a perfect shot from halfway across the room, for Christ’s sake, on the agent who had pointed the gun at Jack. Jesse didn’t have the pain tolerance of a super soldier, much less, shouldn’t have been able to have so much focus with the amount of blood he was losing.

“No you’re fucking not,” Gabe scolded, making room for the medic. “Where were you shot?”

“Over there,” Jesse pointed to an area behind Gabriel, where a dead Talon agent laid. “Fucker’s gonna be six feet under now!” Jesse laughed a little, wincing at the medic applying pressure to his gunshot wound.

There was already a team of medics and some of the cleanup crew heading to that area, collecting what they needed. Gabe was looking at Jesse is disbelief, shocked as the medic began to call someone else over. The only thing he could manage to spit out in his shock was “You’re not far behind!”

“ _ Dramatic _ , Gabi. Hurts worse than the first time, though,” he laughed, as another medic joined in and brought over a stretcher. Gabe’s blood had run cold at that, and Jack looked at him in slight confusion.  _ First time. _

That was the same arm Jesse had taken a bullet to when he was thirteen.

By the time Jesse was being taken to one of the emergency helicarriers, Gabe had tried to follow. The second medic had gently stepped in front of him. “You can’t come on this one, unfortunately, we’re taking him to the nearest hospital, Captain Reyes. There will be a different mode of transportation for the healthy ones.”

Gabe wanted to yell  _ bullshit _ and  _ I’ll go where I damn well please, _ but the fight in him had dwindled as he saw the way Jesse’s arm looked, tied in the serape and soaked in blood. “ _ Most of it’s mine, you know.” _

Jack placed a hand on Gabe’s shoulder as he took a step back, the medic running off. He gave a sympathetic look to Gabe, and motioned for him to follow somewhere else. There wasn’t a lot Jack could do, the medics decided what was best for their patients. Angela was leading the team, and would likely demand to have a hand in dealing with Jesse. But she seemed to be off with a few other less fortunate Overwatch members, soothing their wounds to the best of her abilities. Gabe just stared at his apprentice before walking away with Jack, accepting  the fact he wouldn’t be able to see Jesse in the meanwhile. 

It wasn’t until he was on his way to the hospital the medics had informed Gabe where Jesse was being sent to that he received a call-  _ “Gabriel Reyes?” _

“Speaking,” Gabe said, looking at Jack and shrugging. Jack just shrugged back.

“You’re listed as the emergency contact for Jesse DiAngelo McCree,” The woman said, sounding professional as all hell. Gabe went a bit wide eyed at that, unsure of how to respond. There was a pause for a moment before the woman continued. “We have him at the hospital. We need you here immediately. Are you available?”

“Yes ma’am,” Gabe said, blanking out at anything else. He informed the woman he was already aware and on his way, but the woman had mentioned that “Major surgery would be required,” and that immediately set Gabe on edge.

In all honesty, even though Gabe had come to know Jesse in a much bigger degree in the recent years, there was a lot about him that was just a mystery. The fact he had listed Gabe as an emergency contact was flattering and confusing, something he hadn’t expected. Especially since, thinking back on it, he would have had to make that call years ago. The fact Jesse hadn’t mentioned it before was equally confusing, no “ _ Heya boss, I made you my emergency contact in case I bite the bullet, _ ” to accompany that. It was a reminder for every bit of trust Jesse gave Gabriel, there was another layer of secrecy hidden beneath an all too cocky grin and cowboy hat.

He wondered if that was just one more thing he had learned from Gabe and being in Blackwatch, or if it was something he learned back in Jesse’s gang days.

He arrived to the hospital with Jack, looking a bit more frazzled than usual, having to change in the car so he didn’t walk into the hospital soaked in blood. Jack had to do the same, and both had to avoid staring eyes in the lobby as they were pointed to the waiting room for surgery. Gabe was very much on edge, with Jack looking a little less anxious. Jack and Jesse weren’t close, no, but they had gotten to know each other over the years with Jesse being over to see Mama Reyes as much as Jack was. But there was no denying that Gabe and Jesse were close, close in a separate way from Jack and Gabe. And although Jack was possessive, he’d learn when it was appropriate, and when it wasn’t. Jesse requiring major surgery that Gabe hadn’t even gotten a real explanation for? Not appropriate timing.

But Gabe and Jack waited. The minutes ticked. And an hour later, a doctor emerged.

“Commander Morrison, Captain Reyes,” the surgeon greeted the two, shaking their hands. “An honor to meet you both,” he nodded, clearly a little caught off guard that two of Overwatch’s most decorated were standing in the surgery waiting room.

“Thank you,” they had said at the same time, and the surgeon very clearly had to prevent himself from snorting at the synchronized response. His expression turned serious though, as he began speaking.

“Before we began, I must preface with something. We had to cut off the self-made tourniquet-”

Gabe already didn’t like where this was going.

“-That Mr. McCree had tied around his arm. When we managed that, we had found something. There was definitely an exit wound, but a bullet was still in there. Which would mean that the new bullet had pushed an old one out.”

_ “They patched me up, and I didn’t look back.” _

“There was scar tissue and fragmented bone, just an overall mess. The second bullet was far too much for the old bullet wound, on top of that, the bullet had shattered in his arm, causing too many tears and bleeding to fix it. The old bullet wound had been stuck in his main artery, even if we managed to fix it, his arm would have been useless, so we had to amputate it from the elbow down.”

The rest of whatever the doctor had said went in one ear and out the other, Gabe just vaguely heard him say that Jesse should be awake in another hour or so, and he was allowed to see him. But his stomach churned, because the more pieces that Gabe was given to the puzzle that was Jesse’s past, the more and more he realized that there was a lot wrong with the situation. A small, bloody handprint that didn’t even compare to Gabe’s hand was on the front door of the childhood home. The man who killed Jesse’s father had seen it. He knew Jesse was a  _ child _ ,  _ doctors had seen a thirteen year old kid and left a bullet in his arm and lied and said it was fine. _

It was not fine.

Jack had to shake Gabe a little, the doctor was on his way down the hall, and Gabe was on his way to an outside area to make sure he didn’t cause a scene. Jack quickly followed, saying Gabe’s name over and over, Gabe, Gabriel, Gabi, “What the hell is wrong?” Jack had said once Gabe was outside, anger in his eyes and itching for something to hit.

“That bullet wound,” Gabe had started, pacing and letting out a sound of frustration. “That bullet wound was from when his father  _ died, _ Jack.”

Jack looked at him in confusion. “You said he’d gone to the hospital.”

“He did,” Gabe said, laughing a little and shaking his head. “They removed one bullet and not the other. Lied to a kids face and said it was fine. I fucking-”

“Gabe, stop pacing and talk to me for a minute,” Jack halfway begged, grabbing both of Gabe’s arms and turning Gabe towards himself. “Explain.”

“What’s there to explain? They saw a mixed native kid, who lived not far from a reservation, who obviously had no family left around, and figured if they couldn’t get money, he would be fine. Jack. He had to apply to Social Security when he first joined, I thought he was only kidding about being a dead man, but  _ he was pronounced dead,” _ Gabe was getting angrier with each second, bringing his hands to his face and rubbing his eyes.

“It fucking makes sense. I don’t get how I didn’t see it until now. Jesse let me in his childhood home,” laid out all the puzzle pieces for him to see, for anyone to see, and none of them could solve it. Told Gabriel everything about himself, laid it all down in neat handwriting and Gabe still couldn’t read it until now. “He fucking,” Gabe was leaning against a wall now with Jack holding him, sliding down and sitting now, unable to do much else.

“Gabi, you need to relax for a minute and breathe,” Jack said, calm but worried. Gabe didn’t know what ‘calm’ was right now, but he had a damn good idea about ‘worried.’

“The system left him for dead. The shit he had to deal with, and he admitted to me  _ not everything has changed! _ ”

 

There was the sound of street noise.

The sound of cars honking, dogs barking, people roaming the streets. People walking into the hospital to see their loved ones, looking at Gabe and Jack in confusion, and moving on. There were only a few clouds in the sky. Cicadas were starting to come out. Birds poked down at trash, hoping to get a decent snack for themselves. The world kept spinning. The ebb and flow of life stopped for no one no matter how difficult it was, no matter how upset they were, no matter what tragedy had struck.

Jesse learned that all at age thirteen.

“Told me bold faced. Not everything had changed for him since he joined Blackwatch,” Gabe said, lowering his hands and looking up at the sky. He did the mental math, it was sometime around Jesse’s eighteenth birthday.

He hadn’t realized Jesse was under twenty one then. He had assumed. He had assumed, just like everyone else, no matter how obvious Jesse had made it for them all. Underneath that sharpshooter, underneath that agent, underneath a cocky grin and someone who took a video of him and his minor fuck ups during one mission-

-Jesse had hoarded food, that first month, until Gabe bought him meals until Jesse could get paid. The shit he used to say about his parents, how they’d be disappointed in him, oh God Gabe was just trying to set the kid straight and when Jesse nearly broke his nose he knew he’d crossed a line. The way his pupils blew up, and the  _ crack _ of the first hitting Gabe’s nose. “What would daddy say about you goin’ to jail because you couldn’t listen to your CO?”

And his was the name Jesse put down as his emergency contact.

His. Gabriel Reyes.

When did Gabe let this kid worm his way into his heart? He wasn’t a kid now, he was close to twenty seven. When did Gabe let himself get so attached that he wanted to go back and right wrongs for him? Once upon a time, Jesse had been a nuisance that Gabe wouldn’t even allow to meet his mother, because he was trying to spare her. His mind jumps back and wonders, wonders if the man who had shot Jesse’s arm and killed Luis bled out the same way Luis did. Prays, even, to a God Gabe had given up on when he knew he couldn’t get into Heaven if he had tried. Prays Oliver met the same fate. Prays that Jesse got what he needed, resolution? Was that it? Jesse had admitted he regret the action. Gabe could relate, but not in the same way. The first person he had killed, he had nightmares about for months. What if that had been Martha? Ignacio? Izzy? Julian? Miguel? What if any of them met the same fate as Luis? As Jesse?

Gabe hadn’t noticed the tears rolling down his face, or the way Jack was wiping them away and saying something. Damn it all. Damn the fact he took his upbringing for granted, went to university, got a degree in political science, was in the ROTC, joined the military after and became a decorated soldier. Jesse begged for food. Jesse slept around to cope with any trauma. He remembered vaguely from a psychology class that self harm came in different forms, and sex could be one. Gabe went to Christmas parties and complained about Easter Mass while Jesse was exporting weapons halfway across the southwest, probably hoping he could shack up someplace warm. 

He’d lived with a bullet in his arm for ten years and didn’t get it looked at, despite knowing he could get it checked for free. How much pain was Jesse in constantly? He’d always wondered why Jesse seemed to have a higher pain tolerance compared to Gabe or Jack, and now it was gone. Vanished. Maybe sitting in an ice box, maybe thrown into waste, it was somewhere away from Jesse.

Gabe sat there for twenty minutes as Jack just held on to him, squatting there and making sure Gabe didn’t absolutely lose it. Not outwardly lose it. No matter how much he wanted to scream and punch and yell at the man who killed Luis and left Jesse for dead, yell at Oliver for exploiting Jesse’s trauma and letting him into a gang as a kid, yell at the doctors who left a bullet in Jesse’s arm for so long, yell at himself for being so uncaring for those first few years until Jesse opened up, he couldn’t. Gabe pushed himself off the ground, Jack helping him up, and shook his head. He had probably sat there for twenty minutes contemplating it all. Jesse’s room was A3105, something the doctor had told him before Gabe had to leave and collect his thoughts.

Jack and Gabe walked down the corridors, ignoring any stares. Jack had mentioned Angela had been notified and was on her way, and Gabe just gave a vague nod of understanding. He had a lot on his mind, but first and foremost, he needed to be there when Jesse was awake.

The question popped back in his head, when did he start caring so much for Jesse? When had he let himself get so attached? When had he thought about the way Jesse grinned if he received any kind of praise from Gabriel? When did Jesse come to see Gabe as a source of comfort?

When did Gabe come to see Jesse as a source of comfort?

He and Jack sat and waited for Jesse to wake up once they were in the room. Jack had remembered that they had cut off the serape though, and told Gabe he was going to see if he could find it, so Jesse could still have the pieces. He gave Gabe a quick kiss, looking at him with reassurance, and Gabe was thankful that Jack had become understanding over time. Gabe was thankful for Jack. He thought Gabe was oblivious to the way he glared at Jesse, the way he poked at him, the thinly veiled threats over coffee at Mama’s house that if Jesse ever fucked up, he’d pay. No, Gabe didn’t know how to approach it. But something must have changed, because Jack was understanding now of how protective Gabriel could be. He wasn’t as possessive, just accepted the fact Gabe was an affectionate person, and loved people very deeply.

Loves. Gabe loves Jack. And he loves Jesse, just in a different way.

In a different way? Maybe not all that different.  _ Snap out of this right now. _ Now was not the time to approach that subject, even if he was just looking at the heart monitor with Jesse asleep in the bed, Gabe sitting alone. Jesse’s amputated arm ended right below the elbow, thick gauze wrapped around the wound that was stitched up under there. That would need time to heal, no doubt Angela would be throwing a fit about this all. Angela, Ana, Mama would demand that once Jesse was discharged from the hospital he’s brought over to LA for her to dote on him, but Gabe knew they’d have to head back to the Swiss base right after Jesse is out.

The room was cold. The T.V. was low, some news report playing in the background because no matter how much progress science can make, hospital televisions will play exactly three channels only. If Gabe paid enough attention, he could hear the AC coming through the vents, the footsteps pacing down the corridors. A nurse came in at some point. Gabe didn’t pay much attention. Eventually, though, Jesse stirred, and Gabe’s heart sped up a little.

It took Jesse a second to adjust, eyes blinking slowly at the bright lights. He was still a little high from the anesthetics, that was very apparent in the first moment he spoke, asking, “Gabi. What’s the Blackwatch chat name?”

Gabe blinked a couple of times, before taking out his phone and looking at his recent messages. “Local loose cannon.”

Jesse grinned. “Good, they ain’t gettin’ sappy,” he slurred.

It took another moment of readjustment for Jesse. Doctor’s had some sort of sixth sense for their patients, though, because the same doctor Gabe had spoken to earlier was now in the room. He was writing something down, but the look on his face was back to being serious. He didn’t speak to Jesse the same way he did with Gabe or Jack, though. But as the doctor explained what happened, the look on Jesse’s face fell into shock. And he didn’t respond. The doctor had said a couple more things before leaving Gabe and Jesse alone, Jesse unsure of what to make of the situation. His arm was gone. Half of it was gone, at least.

“...Holy shit,” Jesse murmured. “Is that why it hurt all this time?”

“It  _ hurt? _ ” Gabe asked, now having an earlier thought confirmed. “It hurt. Jesse, why didn’t you get it looked at?”

“Doctor’s told me it would hurt the rest of my life,” he said. “Said there wasn’t anything they could do. Couldn’t buy pain meds, either.”

Gabe had to fight back his anger at that, because there definitely was something the doctors could have done. Remove the bullet, for one. But no, they must have figured a kid like Jesse would’ve been dead in a year or so.

“You had Angela there the whole time,” Gabe said. “For free. Angie would have checked your arm for  _ free. _ ”

Jesse didn’t say anything, he looked more and more upset the more the drugs started to wear off. Gabe knew he shouldn’t scold Jesse, shouldn’t take his anger out on Jesse, not when his arm was recently removed. And the younger man looked on the verge of tears at that point, looking down at his arm. He held it up a little, shocked by how light it felt now, and just  _ lost it. _

When Gabe had breakdowns internally, Jesse had them externally. Jesse wasn’t one to cry a whole lot until this week in particular, back in Santa Fe that was still a fresh wound, and getting his arm cut off was like someone pouring lemon juice on that wound. He cried, messy tears he couldn’t stop. He’d barely registered the presence of someone next to him, weight dipping on the bed and moving a couple of tubes connecting the IV’s in order to hold him. He was pulled closer to Gabe, shaking lightly.

“Morrison’s gonna kick my ass, I know it,” he said in between tears. “You’re both pissed.”

“No, no,” Gabe soothed, regretting lashing out a little now. Regretting not telling Jack to quit being mean to Jesse sometimes. “Jack isn’t mad at you. I’m not mad at you. I’m mad because they treated a thirteen year old so poorly all those years ago, and Jack is mad because they don’t know where your serape is anymore, after all you did to protect us.”

Jesse paused. His breathing has kicked up now, and his eyes were wide. “No, Gabi I need that, my Ma made it,” that’s all he had left besides the gold chain, which was back at the base tucked away in his drawer.

Jesse wasn’t one to break down often, or at all, he usually just smiled and brushed it all off. But this week seemed to be full of revelations, and Gabe was realizing he liked the weight of the younger man against him, still smelling like desert and spices despite it all. “I know you do, Jack’s finding it,  _ mi angelino _ ,” he said, rubbing small circles on Jesse’s arm. Gabe briefly recalled that Jesse was called that by his father, it seemed to be a source of comfort, the affectionate name. That, and he needed to get Jesse to calm down before a nurse came in, wondering about the increased heart rate.

“No, Gabi, that’s all I’ve got,” Jesse said, shaking his head.

“I know. Jack’s gonna find it, alright? One of us should have come with you, but the medics needed room for other injured agents. We didn’t have time to argue, I’m sorry,” Gabe’s voice was calm and reassuring. Something he needed to be right now for Jesse, instead of caught up in his own anger at the doctors and the hospital. “We’re gonna find it,  _ mi angelino _ , you’re okay.”

Jesse was sniffling as he let himself be held, breathing laboured and making strange half sob sounds. He didn't notice Gabe calling him Angelino, only noticed the fact there was no arm or hand. He reached his right hand to grip onto Gabe, trying to cover his face with his non existent one and failing. "I can't get one damn thing right," he choked out, shaking more.

Gabriel caught on to Jesse trying to hide his face, and pulled him into his chest and hushed him once more. “Jesse, you’ve done so much right,” he tries to soothe, rubbing small circles on his back now. “So, so much right. So much I’m thankful for. The highest right now is that you’re alive, with me,” Gabe placed a chaste kiss on Jesse’s forehead. “You are an amazing friend, and an amazing fighter. I’m angry I almost lost you, and relieved you are okay.”

"You almost lost me because I got reckless, Gabi," Jesse says into his shirt. He felt horrible, horrible that he was so reckless and horrible that even now when he feels as though he's fucked up somebody is holding him and calling him Angelino. He doesn't even notice the kiss on the head, just buries his face deeper into Gabe's shirt. It smelled like sweat, meaning he probably hadn't even had time to shower, and Jesse's breathing was still slightly labored, but his shaking had lessened a bit.

 

“You were reckless, but it’s alright. I’m thankful for that, I almost lost Jack, you saved his life,” Gabe hushed. “I’m glad my two favorite people are alive. I came as soon as I could, and even Jack came with.” 

“...I’m one of your favorite people?” Jesse asked.

“You are,” Gabe reassured. “Unfortunately, you tend to grow on people,” Gabe ruffled his hair before continuing. “I’m your emergency contact, you know.”

Jesse hesitated before nodding. “I figured, you were usually the closest at all times, so…” he trailed off, thinking of what to say. “You could reach me in record time. I’m sorry for not telling you,” Jesse muttered, going to hug Gabe. Fuck it, if he was getting this kind of attention from Gabe, he wouldn’t object.

Gabe scooted Jesse over a little, careful with the tubes connecting the IV’s, and laid down with him, pulling the younger man to his chest. “You’re my apprentice for a reason. I’ve got you,” he said quietly.

Jack had come into the room with a bag, looking a little dishevelled. He didn’t say anything about Jesse and Gabe cuddling, Lord knows Jesse needs the affection and reassurance right now. “The officials got ahold of it for data analysis, assholes. It’s not theirs to take,” he muttered going to hand the bag to Jesse. “...They had to cut it. I’m sorry,” Jack said, sitting down in the chair Gabe was in previously.

Jesse was shaking a little as he reached for the bag, looking at it. The serape was completely covered in blood, cut and soaked. There was a fairly good chance it couldn’t be saved. “‘S alright, Jack, not your fault.”

“I can try to stitch it up, if you’d like,” Jack offered.

Jesse shook his head, setting the bag down. “It’ll take forever to get the blood out. Thank you for the offer, though,” he reassured. Jesse went to lay his head back on Gabe’s chest, appreciating the much needed affection.

“...I’m the same way,” Jack began. “I have- if this gets out, I’m kicking your ass right out of Overwatch and drowning you in Mariana’s Trench- I have, a, ah,” Jack’s face heated up as he looked away. “...A blankie,” he finished.

Jesse blinked a couple of times, shocked. Gabe was shocked, also, because Jack didn’t admit that to just anyone. It was a sign of trust, for Jack. But Jesse grinned at him and shrugged, “Serape’s not unlike a blanket, Jack. Just one I can wear.”

“It was from my mother, too,” Jack admitted. “I can’t sleep without it. I’m sorry something so important got lost to you.”

“It’s not your fault,” Jesse said. “I was reckless. ‘Nd I paid for it.”

“I’m not accepting blame. I’m sympathizing, and I’m thanking you. If you hadn’t acted, I might not be here. There’s a difference between recklessness and heroism, it’s very slim, but what you did back there was heroism,” Jack said. “Dr. Ziegler will be in shortly to discuss prosthetics with you. I’m certain we can get you an arm you like, my treat. Even if it’s something ridiculous like Torbjorn’s crab hand.”

Jesse gave a sigh of defeat, because if Jack was saying he wasn’t being reckless, then he wasn’t being reckless. Yes, Gabriel was technically his boss, but Jack was everyone’s boss, and it’d be better for him not to go against his word. “Thank ya, you don’t have to-”

“I  _ want _ to,” Jack said firmly, almost as though he were challenging Jesse to say otherwise.

“ _ Fine, _ ” Jesse huffed. “Can I get it customized?”

“Of course,” Jack said. “Gotta do something with that large paycheck. It definitely not used on vacations, eh, Gabe?” He tried to joke. Gabe rolled his eyes and went along, Jack was cute but that didn’t mean he could transition conversations with ease. “No rest for the wicked, right?”

“Definitely,” Gabe agreed. “And just as long as your arm doesn’t say BAMF, Angelino.”

“Fuck off,” Jesse slurred. “My belt means Bad At Making Friends. That’s what I told Fareeha when she was a kid,” he hit Gabe’s arm lightly, face heating up at being called Angelino by Gabe of all people. It was still comforting to be called that, but Jesse thought Gabe probably couldn’t know that it’d make Jesse flustered. “But, you two need vacation, go somewhere nice and let Ana watch us all,” Jesse joked. He briefly thought about the idea of letting Ana run Blackwatch for a week or two, and instantly pushed that idea away, because she was definitely more terrifying than Reyes or Morrison.

“Oh,” Jack and Gabe both snorted. “Vacations? We don’t get vacations. They’re working us to the grave. We’re never off-duty, really,” Gabe ruffled his hair. Jesse wanted to ask if that’s why there wasn’t a wedding date established, but held off on that one.

Jack nodded, right as Angela walked in, looking like a ball of stress and fury. She dropped her bags, pulling out a couple of supplies, because hospital rules be damned, she was Jesse’s primary physician and should have been there for the surgery. “One, Jesse, I have a million and ten things to file with the hospital you lost your arm at for malpractice. Two, I’m enforcing monthly check-ups for everyone, because how in the hell did I miss a bullet in your arm! And three, Gabriel, I know he looks very sweet cuddly when he’s traumatized, and you enjoy snuggling despite the tough exterior you like to project to everyone, but I’m going to have to ask you to move. And Jesse, stop moving around, I doubt they’ve checked for any other injuries on you since they just focused on your arm.”

He tried to take it all in at once when Angela came into the room, but he was sure she was borderline about to switch to German if he fucked up any of his responses. "I couldn't tell ya the hospital name if I tried. I thought the pain in my arm was just normal from after I got shot! And Angie," Jesse clings tighter to Gabe, frowning. "I always look sweet and cuddly, traumatized or not, he was comforting me," he argued, pouting now. He went to try to wrap himself tighter around Gabe, remembering he only had half of an arm, though. "I want him to stay. It's comforting."

“He can stay, just lay down, belly up please,” Angela sighed. “Gabriel can hug you from behind and let me do my work. But ten years, Jesse! I do not trust your pain tolerance anymore than I trust Jack’s or Gabe’s. Jack, do you remember the gaping wound I found in your side that you thought was just a teensy bullet wound? How I had to spend hours stitching you up, your guts hanging out, I had to give you Gabriel’s blood! You had over a hundred stitches! My Gods, you’re going to put me into an early grave,” she sighed.

Jack rolled his eyes. “You’re over exaggerating, Angela, it wasn’t hundreds.”

“Jack, do not tell me how many stitches were there,” she point the reflex hammer she had taken out at Jack threateningly, as if it would do any damage. Gabe snickered as he adjusted for Angela.

Jesse shifted away, feeling as though he were pushing it with the affection anyways. “I’m not a super soldier, though, Angie,” he said. He was curious about Jack needing over a hundred stitches, though. “I never heard about that. Got anymore fun stories?” Hearing stories would help him ignore the dull pain starting to build up in his arm, probably the pain medications starting to wear off.

“Several,” Angela mutter, pressing at bruises on Jesse to check if there were other broken bones. Jesse winced, but she continued. “Gabriel broke his spine a few years back. The man hadn’t even noticed he was walking with a slight angle until I brought him in for a checkup and screamed about how he should definitely be paralyzed, before I had to figure out how to reset his spine without paralyzing him myself.”

Jack nodded, “What about the time Gabi and I came back from a mission and ate rotten food because we were so hungry? Increased hunger, increased metabolism, increased reaction time for food poisoning.” Angela made a face of disgust as Jack grinned.

“It wasn’t just rotten Jack, it was  _ molded. _ Gabriel was high off shrooms growing on something he ate, and you were vomiting your guts out.”

Jesse snorted, then winced as Angela pressed against a particularly nasty bruise. He was still incredibly sensitive in certain areas, had a few scratches from rolling around, and was sure he had sprained something. “High? Gabi? Both of them sick from food poisoning? That’s something I’d like to have seen,” Jesse grinned. “Was that when Ana sent me the picture of y’all lying in the med bay and ana had put the NA sober coins on both of y’all?” Jesse asked. “But I once saw them eat two whole pizzas. Each. Terrifying, really.”

“It was the time Ana took all those selfies, yes,” Angela answered. “Their food consumption is disturbing at best. There’s a video of Ana fucking with Gabriel still during all of that, since Gabe was crowned Lady Death, consort to Princess Fareeha of the Skies.”

“I forgot that happened,” Gabriel admitted, rubbing small circles on Jesse’s back. “Tasted better than what Jack used to make for meals, though,” He nodded sagely. “The best part about that team was Ana, Liao, and I made good food, Reinhardt’s was passable, and I wouldn’t touch the stuff Torby made with a five foot pole but Jack,  _ Jacques, _ ” Gabriel pretended to wipe away a fake tear. “He forgot salt, Jesse.”

“He’s full of it, I don’t see how that’s possible,” Angela commented. “Continue.”

“He wouldn’t add salt, and we all know he still resists pepper,” Gabe sighed. Jack rolled his eyes.

“Rude,” Jack had said, crossing his arms.

"That time I cooked for all of us at Mama's house," Jesse started. "Jack complained because he bit into a potato that had too much pepper. He proceeded to try to, very low-key, get up and get more water without any of us noticing. Poor gringo, can't handle even pepper, complains if there's too much cayenne," Jesse joked. If it wasn't nearly dying on the battlefield that didn't get him discharged, it was going to be that Jesse was making fun of the Strike Commander of Overwatch for not being able to handle pepper. “And Gabi, I didn’t know you were into being called  _ princess. _ ”

Jack sighed, but immediately smirked. “He might, but not as much as he likes being called Priv-”

Angela immediately reached for her staff and knocked Jack in the back of the head with it, earning a bark of laughter from Jesse as Angela frowned. “I don’t need this right now, you three. The less I know about your sex lives, the better I sleep at night,” she sighed. “Jesse. You have a sprained ankle, but no other injuries besides the arm. I have to begrudgingly admit the team didn’t do a bad job with you. When this hospital discharges you, you’re going to be on bedrest for a week. No missions until you get my approval. Now, prosthetics, there are many options available, but almost everyone prefers to have a human hand.”

“Nobody does as well as you, Doc,” Jesse flattered Angela, but she rolled her eyes. “I’ll take human, though. Jack’s th’ one payin’, and I’m not familiar with prosthetics.” Jesse’s grin was back on his face, despite everything happening, he was back to smiling and joking with everyone.

Angela softened once she realized how much the conversation had put Jesse at ease, and she cleared her throat. “He makes too much money, anyways,” she said softly. “Torbjorn and I work wonders together as mechanics. I’ve been learning a lot on how to get them to feel natural and work like human limbs. Do you have any special requests?”

“Could you get an artist in on it?” Jesse asked, a hint of nervousness at the request. “I’d like to uh, talk to the artist about that one if you can. Other than that, I don’t have much else to request. No crab extension.”

“Torbjorn got his crab extension so he could reload his gun easier,” Angela commented. “We’ll design something with you in mind, Jesse, no worries.”

Jesse felt more comfortable now that the room wasn’t so dreary, but had people he care about around. It would take him a while to get used to not having a real arm, Lord knows Angela would be making him go through physical therapy with and without the prosthetic. The thought of not being able to go on missions for a while bothered him, he would get bored too easily trying to wait around.

“One more thing. Ah, Ana is en route-” Angela was cut off by a door being kicked open, and a shout of “IBNEE!!” interrupting her.

Ana strolled in, carrying boxes that seemed far too heavy for her, but the scent of homemade food filled the room immediately. Jesse’s stomach growled and he smiled, the familiar affection rolling off Ana’s tongue as she dropped the boxes on Jack, immediately waking over to give Jesse a hug. “You! I’m so proud of you!” She yelled, kissing his cheek. “Don’t do the almost dying part again, though, habiibii,” she pinched his cheek, and went to open one of the boxes. There was a tablet in one, presumably so Jesse could stream something else and not get bored with hospital television. In the other though, there was containers of food, and ana was already passing them out. She handed one to Angela first, then opened another and set it down for Jesse on top of a tray she had pulled out for him to eat on. She handed two more with much larger portions to Gabe and Jack, who sighed in relief, obviously starting to have gotten hungry themselves.

“I won’t let them keep you here for long, and Angela isn’t allowed to keep you on bed rest when you’re out. You can rest when you’re dead, and you’re certainly not dead!” She said, handing everyone utensils.

“You’re right, Mama bear, I’m not dead yet,” Jesse grinned. “Got close, though. Lost my arm and serape,” he said, pointing to the bag. “I’ll be more careful next time, though. Someone, namely me, has to stick around and give Fareeha a hard time.” He was thankful to be surrounded by people who cared about his well-being. Had this happen in his gang days, nobody would have batted an eye. Ana had brought him food, Angela came to give a thorough checkup, Jack was going to pay for his prosthetic, and Gabe was cuddling Jesse on the bed. He almost started tearing up again, but stopped himself from doing so.

Ana looked at the serape and nodded, sadly. “Jack would be upset if the same happened to his blankie,” she murmured. “But we should eat.”

Jesse had already beaten her to that, though. He was already devouring it to the best of his ability, before any doctors could come in and tell him not to eat that (not that Jesse had eaten at a hospital ever). “Listen, Ana,” Jesse said, mouth full and looking at the woman. “If Fareeha ever gets tired of your cooking, I’m here, and I am willing. My condition is no stinky fish.” Jesse hadn’t noticed he was leaning against Gabe now, obviously comfortable with the contact.

“I do not enjoy that particular dish, either,” Ana smiled knowingly as Gabe untangled himself from Jesse, flustered under her knowing gaze. He began to eat his food as well, his spiced much more than Jack out of knowledge on how the men prefer their food. Even Jack seemed subdued, but not in his usual way when Gabriel was giving attention to other people- especially Jesse.

Idiots, all of them.  _ Men. Bah,  _ she thought. Ana opened her container of food, and gestured for Mercy to do that same. Gabe and Jack didn’t realize Jesse would be the perfect addition to that group, Jesse had the potential to crack the rest of Jack’s shell and give Gabriel the affection he desires. Not even Jesse realized it, because he had forgone that idea a long time ago. Back when he was sitting in Angela’s office and burning through a cigar, upset that Jack and Gabe were engaged. He was happy for them, sure, but it was painful to have your heart broken.

Jesse continued to eat, noticing the deep thought Ana had put herself into. “Something wrong, Ana?”

“I’ve forgotten the cookies,” she replied smoothly. Jack had grown rather kind to Jesse. She wondered if he was starting to realize the similarities the two men had- he had, after all, opened up about his blankie. He didn’t yell at Ana for mentioning it to Jesse. “I’m worried Fareeha will eat them all before I return.”

She paused her eating to make tea for everyone, it was always polite to offer everyone cups. Jesse took the cup with a thank you, eying Ana a little before going to take a sip. He could tell she was thinking about something, but didn’t want to say it out loud. “How is Fareeha, anyhow?” he asked, setting the cup down. “I haven’t seen her in a hot minute. Send her my regards.”

Gabe had finished his food first, and had slid an arm around Jesse once more. Ana noticed the gesture and said nothing, opting to respond to Jesse instead. “She’s joined the army, despite my reservations about the job,” she admitted with a sigh.

“Didn’t stop Angela or I,” he joked. “You threw a fit about Angela joining, though. Got on my ass about it after y’all found out my age. Scolded Gabi and Jack, too.”

“I fight so you kids don’t have to,” Ana said over her tea. “I won’t stop her, if that’s what she wants. I just pray that it is what she wants, and not what she thinks she wants. I threw a fit about  _ you _ in particular,” Ana pointed at Jesse, “Because you’ve been fighting since you were fourteen. You needed therapy, not more fighting, my child. But I won’t stop you.”

"Not a kid anymore," Jesse reassured. "I did need therapy, not a gun in my hand and a death wish. But I'm... a bit better now," he filled in. He didn't mean to upset Ana, he knew she was a little sensitive when it came to the subject of the service age. "Thank you, Ana. Again," Jesse said, as he handed his container to Gabe to close for him, since he wasn't sure how to do it with just one hand yet.

He felt like he'd be relying on people a lot, particularly Gabe if he was around, for the week or so it was gonna be while he was on bedrest. “Angie, do I really gotta be on bedrest for a week when I’m out?” he whined.

Angela huffed. “I will make an exception if all goes well and let you back in your quarters in forty eight hours time. Since hospitals push patients out as fast as possible, I’d like to watch over you a bit, and make sure you don’t irritate your stitches, as well as checking for other injuries we may not have caught. I will expect checkups from you, as well as Gabriel to give you your antibiotics and pain medication.”

“Gabi’s gotta play babysitter even more? He’s already got the Blackwatch squadron,” Jesse joked. “Thanks, Angie. I’ll behave.”

Angela took the leftover container of food, getting up from her spot. “Gabe is the only one I trust to listen to doctor’s orders. But I should go put this away. Jesse, feel free to call upon me if you need everyone to get out. I will gladly put my staff to less peaceful use, maybe I’ll even get ana off my back,” she grinned, and Ana rolled her eyes.

“Aww, don’t be mean to Ma,” Jesse said. “Thanks Doc, but I like the company right now.” In truth, he just liked the cuddling. He half expected Jack to pull Gabe away for something, but from the looks of it, Jack was just letting them be. Jesse relaxed against Gabe more, happy to be surrounded by loved ones.

Jack stood up, stretching his arms a bit. “I gotta handle the officials. Bitch at them some more for taking someone's personal effects. Ana, backup is greatly appreciated,” he said looking at the older woman. Although Strike Commander Morrison was back up, he was leaving Gabriel be. Jesse looked cute when he was being affectionate ( _ cute? When had Jesse become cute? _ ) and not a pain in the ass. He had to take care of other things, and even though he was tired, he could let his lover and Jesse rest.

“Could you bitch at them to bring better pillows?” Jesse asked, going to lay down. “Also, candy. Blowpops, preferably,” he gave a cheeky grin at Jack and a subtle wink, causing Jack to roll his eyes. Once the three others left, Jesse sighed, starting to feel tired. Had Ana slipped something into his food? No, it was probably the exhaustion.

But Gabe noticed, and pulled Jesse to him in order to be the other mans pillow. “Sleep, mi Angelino, I’ve got you,” he said quietly. Both were exhausted, and both needed to rest. “You’re not going to lose anything else.”

Jesse nodded, resting against Gabe and closing his eyes. “Thank you, Gabi. Really. You mean a lot to me.” And he pretended to ignore the way Gabe’s heart sped up at that, and the fact Jesse felt too used to sleeping with Gabe now.

+++++

True to her word, Angela kept Jesse on bedrest for forty eight hours once they were back. He was allowed to consult with an artist personally, and got his arm painted properly. But, the physical therapy Angela required left Jesse unable to go on missions for a bit. Gabe decided to take this time to start hand picking new Blackwatch recruits, a group of seven or so new faces. Couldn’t have been older than twenty, when Jesse finally saw them. He grinned at the thought of everyone thinking that about him at some point, but no, at least four of these recruits were twenty, he found out. The rest were about twenty five, coming from higher ranks in world wide military covert ops. Gabe had said something about the younger recruits showing exceptional skill from their parts of the military. If they couldn’t prove themselves, they’d be sent off to Overwatch.

The recon mission for the new recruits had been the first mission Jesse was allowed on with his prosthetic arm. And he had a  _ plan. _ Recently, Gabe had actually decided to come down on the group chat, and enforce a censorship. And it was because he heard Fareeha, who was an adult and in basic training for the Egyptian army, say “fuck.” Gabe, being Fareeha’s honorary Uncle, decided to take a stand. Meaning, whenever Jesse typed ‘fuck’, it would auto correct to “Jesse needs to learn to not curse.” He had tried reasoning with Gabriel, but the man hadn’t budged. The title of the chat was changed to “Fareeha runs Blackwatch now”, out of pure spite for the lame new rules. So, he decided to sneak a gopro camera with him, bugged Gabriel’s stuff, and spend the entire recon mission recording every single fuckup.

Jesse called it “Operation: Dinner and a Show.”

He had picked out a nice spot when the evening had rolled around, hiding just enough to sit and watch his captain slink around. He pulled the camera out, grinned, and turned it on, immediately going to focus on Gabe.

“This is Jesse McCree,” he says, just loud enough for the camera to pick up on it. “Welcome to Operation: Dinner and a Show. If I die, make sure this video is the only thing left of my legacy.” Because depending on what he found, Gabe would surely kill him once he saw the video.

It was only the first evening, Gabe had made the recruits set up camp, and there were Talon agents sneaking around still. The older members of Blackwatch had been sent off to get rid of the few around, and Gabe was keeping an eye on agents that came near camp. Hazing the new recruits would be tomorrow, and he was sure there would be some golden footage from all of that, but watching Gabe when he thought he was alone was hilarious. He’s known for some time Gabe isn’t as balanced and collected as he likes to project, but rather, clumsy and a mess. An absolute mess. But Jesse needed other people to know he was a mess.

“And here we see the noble Captain Reyes in his natural habitat. He thinks he’s so badass,” Gabe stumbled a little, and Jesse contained his laughter. “BOOM. Look at that. Tripped over the clearly obvious branch because he thought he could break it. He’s trying to bend over and pretend he’s picking something up off the ground, but nope. I saw that.” He sighed. “I’m disappointed. I’m upset he didn’t fall entirely. Do I need to purchase a refund or-- NO I DON’T! NO I DON’T! THIS JUST IN GABRIEL STEPS AND FALLS BY POTHOLE WHILE TRYING TO SMOOTHLY RECOVER FROM BEING UNABLE TO BREAK A TREE BRANCH!” He was yelling as quietly as he could while Gabe looked around, frowning and getting up.

There was a quiet rustling of grass, and Jesse knew they someone had found his hiding spot. “Shit, need to do something,” he said, and the camera caught a flash of nondescript people as Jesse shot them down, hearing the thud of the bodies hit the ground. He readjusted himself, panning the camera back towards Gabriel. “Anyways, need to move, since the noble Gabriel heard my gunshots, and has now been startled,” Gabriel was indeed looking around after the gunshots, confused about the source.

Jesse made haste and did as he said, and anyone who was watching the footage would just see it cut to the next bit. What they didn’t see was Jesse spending time trying to find the perfect hiding spot: somewhere along Gabe’s route, but still out of his sights. He could  _ not _ risk being caught. 

He flipped the camera back on, refocusing on Gabriel and zooming in. “Here we see the Captain pretending to reload his ammo, but he’s actually going to pick a wedgie,” Jesse was still speaking quietly, and grinning, zooming onto Gabe’s ass. “Honestly, his ass is nice, but his thighs are much nicer. I know the Strike Commander is demanding, Gabe, but try not wearing thongs on missions? Boxers would be much more efficient.”

Gabe didn’t even seem to notice Jesse was there, either. And Jesse was having a blast. The evening passed, though, and Gabe had decided to take the first watch. Jesse was still up, though, his time in Blackwatch and having to function on missions with no sleep for thirty six hours would come in handy. Especially for now, because Gabe had basically fallen asleep. There’s enough light coming in where the viewer could get a clear enough view of Gabe, and Jesse was sitting in darkness from where he was. “And here, the mighty beast comes to know slumber. Good thing I’m awake, or else we’d all be vulnerable.”

Jesse zooms in a bit more, right onto Gabe’s sleeping face. “Oh, he drools though, that’s kinda cute, but-” He was cut off by a loud snore from Gabe, and he sighed. “That. The  _ snores. _ I’m equally surprised and horrified the other members of Blackwatch can sleep through this anymore.” Nevermind the fact he’d shared a bed with Gabe on two separate occasions now, and hadn’t woken up from the snoring himself. That wasn’t the point. The point was, that this video is going to get the cursing band lifted from the group chat.

“How does Jack do it?” he asks. “Is the sex really that good? Is the dick worth it, Morrison? Is the dick that good?” God help his soul if Jack got this video. But, he’d keep going.

“Does Jack give one of those nose things to Gabriel to sleep with? Does he put a pillow on his face, keeping Gabe borderline suffocating? Does he fall asleep in record time? The world may never know,” Jesse rambled. Really. He’d have to work on his will before he edited the video.

The sounds of footsteps creeped closer, and Jesse had said something along the lines of “Hang on,” before pointing the camera down, putting bullets right into two Talon agents who had decided to sneak up on Jesse. Their bodies fell down, bleeding out but dead before they hit the ground. He readjusted himself, and pointed the camera back at a sleeping Gabriel.

“Jesus. He’s still asleep. What kind of demon is Jack Morrison at night if Gabriel can sleep through gunshots at almost no distance?”

By the next hour, Jesse was getting bored. Gabriel still had thirty minutes left before someone else would go take watch, and Jesse got an idea. He turned the camera back on, and pointed it at himself. “You know. I’ve had an idea. The hand in warm water trick is far too juvenile, so I’m gonna see if I can get one of the guys to help me move his sleeping bag in a bit onto one of the emergency rafts, and put him in the lake nearby.”’

He turned the camera back off, getting up and stretching. He’d been up for quite a while, but sitting in the same position for that long made him a little stiff.  _ How does Ana do it? _ He wonders, as he’s hopping down from the spot he’d set up camp at, and going over to the main area with all the other agents. A couple of recruits were still up, along with older members likely scaring them with stories from Blackwatch missions. Upon seeing Jesse, the seasoned members chimed in with “Evening, Jesse,” or “Where the hell have you been?” The recruits were respectful, something that would surely wear off soon, adding in their own “Evening, Second Lieutenant McCree, sir.” He liked the respect. He’d been promoted after the incident with his arm, though it was kept low-key. He was still Black Ops, nobody really knew about him.

“Where the hell have you been?” An older member asked, picking at leftover food of hers. “You’ve been gone practically all day. We were thinkin’ of starting a game of Jesse Hasn’t.”

“Doing God’s work,” Jesse replied, picking up some food to take back with him. “Getting rid of the chat filter. Anyone wanna put Reyes in the middle of the lake?” He asked.

“McCree,” Another member shook their head. “You’re gonna get fired. Sit down and play with us,” they said.

“Please. I’m too useful. And y’all are no fun _ , _ ” he said. “I ain’t playin’. Y’all know enough.”

“We’ll call you if we need anything,” They said. The new members looked confused as the older ones began to rummage around their bags for alcohol they had snuck with them on the mission.

“You know, as acting Second in command for Reyes,” Jesse began to point out, putting water into his canteen now, “I should be telling him you’re about to consume alcohol. But I’m not a snitch.”

The members laughed, and the recruits began to wonder what kind of fresh hell they’d decided to enter.

Jesse turned the camera back on when he was one his way back to his sniping spot, pointing it at himself. “Alright. Nobody wanted to have fun. They said Reyes would fire me.” He rolled his eyes, climbing back up to the position. “I know the true stats. In my sniping position, I have recorded Gabriel Reyes in his natural habitat, and I have taken down more threats than most of them combined.” He opened his canteen of water and took a sip, setting everything down and taking his position once more.

This time, Gabe seemed to be awake. He rolled his eyes, opening up one of the MRE’s and adding water where needed. “He’s awake now. Actually doing his damn job,” He said, placing the camera to face Gabe.

It didn’t seem like Gabe would be awake long, because he was already starting to nod off again. Jesse watched, shocked that they’d been letting this man lead a covert ops unit for so long. Then again, when he became acting SiC for Reyes he should have suspected it back then. The longer Jesse watched while he ate, the more disappointed he became. “He just kissed his guns to sleep. This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I think they’re named Maria and Paula, after some telenovela he watches.”

And Gabe did fall asleep again, leaving Jesse in his sniping spot with nothing else to do. He turned off the camera and decided to keep watch for the night, because it was obvious for the rest of the time that Gabe would have to, he wouldn’t be awake. Jesse sighed as he turned off the camera, finishing up his food and deciding to take watch for the night.

By the next day, Jesse had fallen asleep around the time the second person took watch, and was therefore, late when he had to show up to drills for the recruits. He had changed gear, hidden his camera somewhere Reyes couldn’t find it, and ambled his way down to the main camp. He covered his mouth as he yawned, recruits jogging past him with a couple of older members leading. They waved, and he waved back, going to meet up with Gabe.

Gabe was standing and watching the joggers, arms crossed and in his PT clothes as well. Jesse knew damn well Gabe wouldn’t be joining in until he was fully awake, and that would be another hour at least, if Gabe rubbing his eyes and yawning was anything to go by. But he walked up, grinning and arms crossed. “Morning, Gabi. Sleep well?”

He sighed. “Can’t call me Gabi on the field,” he corrected. Jesse wouldn’t care. “But I slept fine. Where have you been?”

“Staking out,” he shrugged. “ _ Around _ . Checking out the recruits. Seeing if we have any potential candidates,” he said with a grin. The look of irritation was not lost on Jesse, and, oh,  _ this _ was going to be a fun day.

“I gotta go catch up with them,” Gabe mumbled, waving Jesse off and going to jog with the rest. Jesse looked on as Gabe jogged, noticing how Gabe was pushing himself towards the front. The course they’d be running meant they’d be passing Jesse a few times, but it’d be a bit before they came around again. So, Jesse took the opportunity to change clothes and go grab his camera. Gabe’s clothes should still be bugged, so he managed to fit the go pro somewhere on him, in order to catch footage but not be away all day.

By the time Jesse had managed to finish doing all of that, the group was already running past. A few recruits were starting to look a little winded, but not one, who had apparently been a marathon runner aside from his time in the Navy SEALs. He was keeping steady and running side by side with Gabriel, who, well, was a super soldier. He had a ridiculous amount of stamina. Jesse looked at them running past, and decided to test something. He grinned at the marathon runner, waving his fingers a bit and watching the frustrated look flash across Gabriel’s face. The marathon runner waved back, and as Gabriel sped up a bit, the runner matched his pace. Older members passed confused looks to each other, keeping the jogging up.

“I think Gabi’s trying to one up the runner,” Jesse murmured. “Probably trying to make a point.”

It was another lap or so, before it was completely obvious that Gabe and the recruit were running about ten feet in front of everyone else, Gabe looking a bit more annoyed now and the recruit grinning. Neither of them seemed to be very winded, but they were definitely starting to push themselves, and Jesse just snickered at it. Gabe trying to one up the recruits was something he hadn’t expected, but it was completely welcome as a part of Dinner and a Show.

The recruits looked annoyed as they came to a stop after running a cooldown lap, glaring at Jesse. He grinned in return, shrugging at them. “Enjoy the run?”

“Captain Reyes, sir,” a girl asked, hunched over and resting her hands on her knees. “The older recruits said McCree didn’t have to do any of this, why not?”

Gabe was sitting down and catching his breath, looking annoyed at the recruits. “Because he didn’t,” he replied.

“Aw, Captain,” an older member piped up. “Why not reissue the Jesse McCree challenge?”

Gabe frowned, standing back up and stretching. It would get the recruits off his back, sure, but there were no paintball guns like they’d usually use, so he’d just have to let them figure it out along the way. He was more inclined to say no, but the way Jesse was grinning at the runner made him irritated, and before his intuition could tell him no, Gabe had said, “Why not?”

“Jesse McCree challenge?” The runner asked.

“The reason McCree was able to catch my attention,” Gabe said, a little too blunt. Jesse grinned.

The recruits were all ears, and Gabe sighed. He’d regret this, and Jesse was excited to get it all on video. “Get a gun to my temple. That’s it.”

The recruits all looked around at each other, some whispers of “That can’t be hard,” fell amongst them. How hard would it be to catch Reyes off guard? It couldn’t be incredibly difficult, but the older members looked at them as though the recruits were making a mistake. Because they  _ were. _

Instead of going the true route of the Jesse McCree challenge, with three people as backup for Gabriel and a sniper, the recruits just had to work on getting past Jesse and two others, and get their gun on his temple. The first recruit to try was the girl who questioned why Jesse didn’t have to do any of what they’d been doing, gun in hand with the safety on. Her name was Sylvia, if Jesse could recall correctly, she wanted to join Overwatch after coming from the AFEUR unit in Colombia. She had a strong stature, agile and flexible. Gabe had offered her a spot in Blackwatch if she could complete the training, and she had said yes.

The moment the whistle was blown, she began running left, trying to get into a blind spot and pass through there. The first mistake she had made was trying to get pass Jesse who had no problem tripping her, watching her fall, and going to pin her down. He took the weapon from her, and pinned her arms behind her back. Everyone was quiet, and Jesse got up, spinning her gun on his finger.

“Anyone else wanna try?” he asked, handing the gun back to Sylvia. The recruits all looked at each other, before the runner took a step up.

Interestingly enough, he carried a six-shooter not unlike Jesse’s, but definitely didn’t have the skillset to match. Because of the formal military training, the SEALs operative was a bit more stiff with his gun, more rigid in the way he moved. Coordinated. Jesse low-key adjusted the gopro he had hidden on himself, taking position. He’d been through a rigid training program, picked up by Gabe as well after he’d sent in an application to Overwatch, and admissions officers handed it to Gabe. He had a large stature, a little taller than Jesse, but it made him just a bit slower.

The whistle blew, and instead of doing what Sylvia had done, the operative rolled away from Jesse, sending an elbow into a different mans neck. He turned and threw that operative into the second one, but left Jesse with a clear enough opening to roll behind him, kicking the operative’s feet out from under him. The man yelped as he fell down, feeling Jesse immediately disarm him and pin an arm behind the mans back. Gabe stood, grinning and not having moved from his spot while the recruits tried to get to him. It wasn’t true to the day Jesse had actually caught Gabe’s attention, but he’d learn from the attempts over the years by other recruits that he wouldn’t have to move a muscle. Because nobody but Jesse could actually do the challenge.

The operative was panting underneath Jesse, who now had two revolvers and a cocky grin on his face. The operative grinned back, and Gabe rolled his eyes. The other two Blackwatch members were up again, and Jesse stood up as well, spinning both revolvers on his fingers. “Did we forget to mention nobody’s actually won the challenge?” He asked, looking back at Gabe.

“Intentionally,” Gabe pointed out. “Stop spinning the revolvers.”

“Nuh-uh,” Jesse said, tossing them between his hands and continuing to spin. The operative got up and held out his hand, and Jesse handed the gun back.

“You had a decent strategy, use them against each other,” Jesse pointed out. “But you didn’t do it the right way. You left yourself wide open for me to roll up behind ya.”

Jesse looked back at the rest of the recruits, but they were all shaking their heads. He laughed at that, shrugging. If they didn’t want to try, so be it, but he’d gladly give a demonstration to the group. “Y’all wanna see how it’s done, then?” He asked. Another Blackwatch member stood up, sighing, because she knew they’d say ‘yes’ and that she’d have to take Jesse’s spot as the third backup. And lo and behold, the recruits gave a well-synced “Yes, sir,” and Jesse was looking at Gabe for approval.

Gabe nodded, and everyone took positions for the third time.

Jesse eyed his targets, taking in for a moment on how he was to do this. He didn’t have to do it normally, since there were no snipers this time, but that made it a bit easier. Gabe blew the whistle, and Jesse knocked a mans legs out from under him, taking advantage of the fact he was now off balance to throw him into the nearest person. Before he could get caught off guard, he rolled over to the right, away from the two members fumbling with each other and standing up straight again, running towards Gabe before the woman could notice Jesse had managed to roll behind her. She had tried to catch Jesse, but Jesse had rolled out the way from her grab, and allowed himself the clear line he needed to get to Gabe. Before Reyes could have his gun at Jesse, his six shooter was already of Gabe’s temple, safety on but the finger on the trigger. Not true to the original day, not by any means, but still a similar enough method.

“How ya doin’ there,  _ private _ ?” Jesse grinned. Because yes, he’d gotten Ana to tell him what Jack had meant to say back in the hospital.

Gabe’s eyes widened as he shifted a little, pushing Jesse’s revolver away with the back of his hand. “You’re getting slow, Second Lieutenant.”

“Well,  _ excuse me, _ I’m a bit older and it wasn’t the exact same setup,” he said, putting the gun back in his holster. The recruits stared at him, jaws open and faces full of confusion.

Jesse saw something change in Gabe’s expression, the way he broke eye contact as quick as possible and shifted again. “Demonstration over,” he said quickly, walking past Jesse and away from the group. Jesse’s eyes trailed him for a moment, before looking back at the group. The older members were staring wide eyed, covering their mouths and murmuring to each other.

“...And that’s how you get a gun to Gabi’s temple,” he shrugged.

“Gabi?” Sylvia asked.

“Oh no,” an older member spoke up, snickering now. “No, no, Jesse is the only one who can call Reyes  _ Gabi, _ besides Strike-Commander and Captain Amari.”

Sylvia grinned, catching on now, “ _ Oh. _ ”

Jesse felt his face heat up, and quickly tried to defend himself, “I’m his acting Second in Command, we’re good friends- listen. Fuck y’all.” There was no defending himself. His crush on Gabe had been obvious to the older members for years, and the recruits were slowly catching on, starting with Sylvia it seemed.

Giggles floated through the group, and Jesse shook his head and walked past them, muttering something about how he needed to go do something anyways, and by something he meant take his sniping position and continue documenting Operation: Dinner and a Show. When he went back to edit it later, he’d need to cut that last half out. Jesse set his camera back up, pulling out his bag with an MRE and his canteen of water. He sighed as he just made food, taking sips of water in between making food and trying to shove the recent event of being called out by his squadron out of his mind. Jesse hadn’t looked up for that period of time, not until his MRE was ready and he was effectively shoving egg noodles in his mouth- and then choking on them when he finally looked up and saw Gabriel Reyes with his hand in his pants.

He quickly went to shut the camera off, covering the lens with his hand and staring down at the camera. So. Gabe was getting himself off, had no idea Jesse was there, and he had probably caught the beginnings of it on tape. He’d make a mental note to delete that, as to make sure there’s no scandal later on. Or something. He shoved the camera back in his bag, trying to not look up, because he had a vague idea of what was happening, if the noises he could hear from the bug Jesse had placed on Gabe were anything to go by. And he was  _ definitely _ not hard. Or in denial.

...Peeking wouldn’t hurt, right?

Against his better judgement, Jesse glanced up to see Gabe’s eyes halfway closed and pants half-off, slowly stroking himself. And as much as Jesse would have liked to will himself to look away, he couldn’t because this was something he’d been imagining for a while if he only had himself for a night. Not the exhibitionism part, the part where Gabe said his name-

Jesse’s name? Wait. Wait, wait,  _ wait _ , just one moment. Jesse was definitely staring (full of complete and utter shame, now.), but was fixated on the fact Gabe was… almost definitely moaning both his and Jack’s names. With each brush of the thumb over the head of his cock, Gabriel would let out a low whimper, begging Jack to let Jesse touch him. And more than anything, Jesse would like to at this moment, but he couldn’t just stroll in and offer that, now could he? But… but it wouldn’t be so wrong if his hand happened to find the button on his pants and undid it, along with the zipper, and started to palm himself, right?

A wave of shame fell over him, this is something private Gabe is doing, he can’t just watch that. But that didn’t stop him from letting out a small gasp as Gabe bit the side of his thumb, squeezing his eyes shut as he sped his pace up. Jesse paused for a moment, cursing under his breath as he managed to get his own cock out, pumping at a slower pace than Gabe. It was wrong, it was horribly wrong, he’d probably pay for his sins via being fired for insubordination after he showed the video to Gabe in order to get the ban lifted from the chat, but it was worth it right now. The way Gabe looked when he was actually lost in his own feelings of arousal was incredibly attractive. Jesse had seen Gabe’s eyes blown with lust, anytime he’s around Jack and the two are flirting when they think nobody is looking could give him a pretty decent indicator of Gabe’s mood once he had time alone or with a partner.

Gabe was having a harder time controlling the sounds from his mouth, instead of saying anything, he was just whimpering now. Jesse could roll with that, not hearing his name guaranteed his stomach wouldn’t drop with the two syllable sound each time. He managed to stay quiet, still stroking himself slowly, caught off guard once Gabe had reached his own climax. His eyes were squeezed shut, spilling his seed all over his own hand and letting out a choked groan, and fuck if that wasn’t the hottest O-face Jesse had seen, much better than the imagining he’d done for himself. But Gabe’s eyes snapped open, looking directly over to where Jesse was, and Jesse felt his heart stop. It was another beat before Gabe sighed and went to fix himself, walking off to a nearby stream to go wash his hands off, and Jesse let out a small sigh of relief. Gabe hadn’t really seen him, just looked in the general direction, but that meant he’d have to change sniping spots again. He sighed as he shook his head, shoving his dick back in his pants and fixing himself, deciding he’d deal with his hard-on at a later date. Watching somebody jack off in some sort of exhibitionist show was probably going to send him to hell, if there was one.

In the back of his mind, somewhere, there was a voice telling him he should have given up the idea of having Gabriel Reyes in bed a long time ago, but the voice began to switch. Instead of giving up on his conquest to sleep with anyone who gave him the time of day, he found comfort in Gabriel, comfort in the way he began to casually call Jesse angelino or the way he seemed just a bit more protective. The idea of romantic feelings being returned was an asinine idea he’d felt like he made up, and he didn’t know if it hurt worse to push the feelings aside, or convince himself that Gabe just saw him as a potential bed partner to spice up his and Jack’s relationship. Any other time had he seen someone getting themselves off, he would have been cocky enough to offer a hand (or mouth) if he knew them enough, and even felt like he was in the mood. But seeing someone who had comforted you through more trauma confrontations in one week, effectively making him fall deeper into the hellfire of romantic feelings for Gabe, literally getting off to the idea of him didn’t excite him like he thought it would. Instead it made his heart hurt, because yeah he had just tried to get off, but it didn’t work because it didn’t feel right, and guilt weighed on his chest more than anything else.

He worked to shove everything over again back into the hiding spot, vowing to come back in a bit to grab his things and figure out a new spot. His MRE went wasted, he just emptied it out, appetite lost, and put the stash back in his bag. For right now, he needed to go back to the camp, figure out if he could get the Navy SEAL guy to blow him later, and push Gabe masturbating right out of his mind. Suppression is the easiest coping mechanism for him, really. He hopped back down carefully from his sniping spot, and went back towards the camp, spotting everyone in changed clothes and sitting around. The mission they’d originally arrived for was completed already, they were all waiting around for new orders, and supposedly the rookies hazings were tomorrow.

He spotted Sylvia holding a vase, and gave a quizzical look. She avoided his gaze, frowning and staring at the potted plant. An older member finally spoke up, “We made her carry it around because she was complaining about the McCree challenge.”

“That makes sense,” Jesse sighed. Ridiculous punishments were a common Blackwatch thing, because no matter how gritty Blackwatch had to be behind the scenes, they were just a group of human disasters with guns.

“I have to carry it the rest of the mission,” she said, a solemn look in her eyes.

Jesse had a response lined up about how she shouldn’t complain, until he whipped around the moment he heard footsteps and saw Gabe, looking more relaxed but caught off guard by Jesse’s perception. They locked gazes for a moment, before Jesse turned around and looked back at Sylvia. No, he could ignore Gabe for now, because he didn’t know if he was irritated or embarrassed. But asking why Gabe was moaning his name was not an appropriate question in front of the squadron, never mind the amount of times Jesse had jokingly flirted with Gabe in the middle of missions over the comms. Jesse opened his mouth to respond, until Gabe had cut in.

“I’ll take first watch,” he said, walking over near Jesse. The younger man side stepped a little, nodding.

“I’ll be second,” Another member chimed in.

“Third,” Jesse said, looking directly at the SEALs recruit and winking with a grin. He knew Gabe could see, but he didn’t really care, he needed to get rid of the frustration and half hard on he was sporting.

The air felt tense, the Blackwatch members didn’t necessarily understand why Jesse was sidestepping his way from Gabe, when only moments before they had been joking around. It fell over all of them though, that the two disappeared at the same time, and something may have happened then and there. Doesn’t mean they’d admit it out loud though, the recruits were still learning. A couple of older members eyed the two, doing their strange tango of avoidance with Jesse in the lead, and Gabe’s jealousy falling off of him in the least of subtle ways. The SEALs recruit never noticed, though, just smiled at Jesse when he winked. Poor soul was going to get hell during hazing.

Later that night, the recruits hands were on Jesse’s hips, and as he faced the other way, he tried to ignore the fact it wasn’t the recruits face he was seeing in his mind. He tried to ignore that he imagined stronger hands digging his nails in, and that the kisses peppered on his spine weren’t feeling right to him.

Although the recruits didn’t know it, the next day was hazing day, and after avoiding Gabe still and faking exhaustion because Jesse didn’t feel like helping, he’d found a new spot to settle in. He was lounging, knowing no more Talon agents would find them since all in the area had been taken out, and felt comfortable in just a bulletproof vest. He’d gotten scoffs when he wandered up wearing a shirt with the infamous ‘I want to believe’ graphic printed on it, frayed from time and over wearing it. Hey, he was from New Mexico, and Jesse loved X-Files like Gabe loved telenovelas. After figuring out where Gabe and the others would be taking the recruits to haze them, Jesse worked fast in order to find a new hiding spot, knowing that because the older members were aware they were being filmed, they’d be a bit more over the top.

Starting with the SEALs recruit, who had three guns on him and a knife against his throat, one member yelling in very angry Russian, probably not meaning anything. Jesse was snickering, able to see him trying to not lose his calm and collected exterior, but his eyes screamed for someone to help him. There was real fear, real fear because he didn’t know if anyone was actually there to hurt him, and the man had no idea what kind of hell he’d crawled into. It took a moment before he was able to get the knife off of him and started fighting back, missing the shots he did fire off until someone had come and knocked him out, tying his wrists.

“They’ve gotten tame,” Jesse said absentmindedly, enjoying the view with a bag of Funyuns. “My hazing involved everyone chasing me down and my CO faking his death and making me learn to disarm a bomb. They are bein’ a little rough with him, though,” he chuckled.

He shoved another chip in his mouth before turning the camera over to Sylvia, holding the potted plant in one arm and letting herself be backed into the corner by a masked man, who was definitely Reyes. Admittedly, he was terrifying when he seemed to be stalking prey, but Sylvia was a small woman. Even if everyone had been handpicked from covert operations, being backed into the corner unexpectedly would make anyone do something irrational. For example, taking your potted plant and smashing it over her CO’s head, making him fall over and Jesse lose his shit.

“Oh, oh sweet pea!” He said, coughing as he choked on chips. “Here we see Captain Reyes successfully taken out by someone a full foot shorter than him, and barely twenty one years old!”

She stood over him, nervous as she got down and unmasked him and began to fervently apologize to Reyes. He was only unconscious for a few seconds, before lifting a hand to rub his head. A couple of other members had jogged over, bending down and asking him questions Jesse couldn’t really hear, and Sylvia had run off. They helped him back up, and Jesse just watched, shrugging. “He kinda had it comin’.”

And truth be told, that’s when the hazing had ended, because Sylvia had found Jesse’s hiding spot and told him Gabriel had a concussion. He laughed a bit at that, shaking his head and offering her a spot. “He’s had worse,” he hummed, taking another bite of the chips.

“Have you been doing this the whole time?” She asked, sitting down and pulling her knees up to her chest. The poor girl looked guilty as all hell, she was biting her nails right down to the skin and looking over at her Captain.

“Yeah,” Jesse said, mouthful of chips muffling his words. “He’s a disaster. Needed to be exposed. Not like I ain’t been doin’ my job.”

“Did… did he buy ice cream?” she asked, watching the concussed man lay down with a pint and a spoon, whining.

“He does it when his novelas take a turn for the worst,” Jesse said. “That was no secret.”

“He watches novelas?” She asked in shock, turning to Jesse and grinning.

“He watches too  _ many. _ And then gets upset when I talk about my shows.”

Sylvia laughed at that, turning and watching Gabriel again. He looked completely done, and by that point had only been speaking in Spanish, and Jesse was sure he was talking about Jack the entire time. If the slurred mess that was coming from his mouth could be considered a real language at that point, he’d called the pillow he was clinging to Jack at least three times.

He never threatened to fall asleep which was good, because everyone decided to leave him since they knew Jesse was around. At some point, Sylvia had left to go join the others for dinner that night, and Gabe had resorted to watching his telenovelas and texting Jack on the burner phone he had bought for the mission, so no one could track them.

And by the fourth day, Gabriel had ended up concussed once more. Jesse was surprised, honestly, only Gabe could get two concussions within 24 hours.

When Jesse had been lounging around once more and watching him from the camera, Gabe hadn’t announced himself when he walked up to a recruit, and said recruit had decided to whip around and deck him in the face, leaving Gabe with the second concussion and a blooming black eye. He sat down again, and Jesse started to honestly feel bad. He was about to climb back down from the sniping position, until Sylvia showed up with the second recruit and introduced him.

“He’s been doing this the whole time?” He asked.

“Yep,” Jesse said, a second time. “Join the ‘I punched Gabriel Reyes’ club. It’s exclusive. Ana Amari is in it, even.”

“Captain Amari?” Sylvia gave a quizzical look.

“Sparring,” Jesse said. “She doesn’t take it lightly. Her daughter learned from ‘er, even. Freeha’s punched her uncle, but she was twelve and had been mad about something.”

“Oh my God,” Sylvia murmured. “He really is a mess. And he leads us?”

“Yep,” Jesse grinned. “He’s got a pretty enough smile and enough medals to keep us goin’,” he said.

The recruits looked at each other when Jesse called Gabe’s smile pretty, but decided to not comment. They offered him to come down and come hang out with everyone else, because hazing was officially over and they had no clue when they were all supposed to leave, but Gabe was concussed. It couldn’t be too long. Jesse waved them off and said he’d be alright, he had enough food and didn’t feel like dealing with the concussed man. He was still upset about the incident that shall not be named from a few days back, and didn’t want to stir anything. But Gabe had his phone out, and was obviously speaking to Ana, if the way he sounded like he was going to cry was any indication. Also, he had called her Mom a few times, and Jesse thought that was a pretty good indicator, since he couldn’t call anyone outside of Overwatch or Blackwatch on missions, no matter how injured.

“Day four of Operation: Dinner and a Show. This is no longer an exposé, but rather a documentary on the human mess that is Gabriel Reyes,” he sighed. “So many teenage girls have this mans face on their walls. If only they knew.”

Gabe hung up the phone, and a few minutes later, Jesse felt his own vibrating in his pocket. He sighed and fished it out, knowing it was Ana, and knowing she was going to ask about what happened to Gabe, since she could barely understand him. He prayed for a brief moment, before hitting the answer button and bringing it to his ear.

“Howdy,” he said, popping a baby carrot in his mouth.

“Jesse,” she said, voice stern. “What happened to Reyes?”

“Double concussion,” he replied simply. “When are they pulling us out? He just dropped icecream on himself. This is getting ridiculous, Ana, and I’ve been documenting it.”

He heard her sigh over the phone. “Only Gabriel could manage this. I’ll have to inform the superiors, but it’ll be another day or so probably.”

“He’s not even speakin’ Spanish properly,” Jesse said. “Not earlier?”

“ _ So _ worried,” she teased. “No, Jesse, just keep an eye on him.”

“Beat ya to it,” he half grinned into that.

“I’m serious, Jesse. Crush or no, Gabriel has a lot of people who care very much for him, and would like to see him back in one piece,” Ana scolded, and Jesse could hear her shuffling through papers. He winced at the word crush, he honestly didn’t know how to feel about the word at this point.

“I’d also like to ask why his actual SiC hasn’t pulled him from the field-- surely she’s been notified about his condition?” Ana asked, and Jesse gulped.

“About that,” He laughed nervously. “I uh, may have forgotten to tell her about the second one until now?”

Ana paused, and she let out a frustrated sigh. “Jesse McCree,” she began, and Jesse felt as though he’d opened hell’s gates himself. “You are his acting Second in Command, meaning he puts your life into his hands! I cannot pull you lot out myself, I have to speak to the actual Second in Command, but make sure Gabriel’s brain isn’t swelling. I’ll speak with you later on. I’m going to have you all pulled within the next twenty four hours.”

Jesse winced as Ana scolded him, holding the phone away from his ear a bit. Okay, so yes, he’d fucked up. He was about to defend himself, until Ana had said something in Arabic and continued. “It looks like his first concussion has been filed. Amateurs. He should’ve been pulled immediately.”

“I’m sorry, Captain,” he muttered. “I’ll go take care of him.”

“ _ Good, _ ” She said, sternly this time. “We’ll be there tomorrow.” With that, Ana had hung up, and Jesse sighed once more. He got on with shoving all of his things in the bag, turning the camera off and climbing down from his last hiding spot. He’d have to return to everyone else to put his stuff away before going to see Gabe, but the solemn look on his face steered everyone clear from him. Jesse was not a man to bother when he was in a bad mood, but it was more like guilt. He’d let his petty emotions about a situation he’d been wrong about get in the way of somebody else's well being, but now wasn’t the best time to think of that.

He dropped everything off and walked to the “room” (more like a run down area of the building they’d been staying in, overcome by nature itself) Gabriel was staying in, and managed to get the door open. He hadn’t moved, but he definitely looked worse for wear. Jesse hissed a little when he saw Gabe’s eye, knowing the bruising was going to be bad and take a little longer than usual to fix itself up. He walked over to Gabriel, squatting down and lightly tapping his face. “Hey. You need to be in a bed,” Jesse murmured.

Gabe opened his eyes, and squinted at Jesse’s face. When had Jesse entered the room? “‘M not feelin’ well,” he muttered.

Before Jesse could ask what he meant, Gabriel had turned to the other side and thrown up, making a mess. Okay. Guess that answered the question. He sighed, getting up and pulling Gabriel up with him. The man stumbled a bit, until Jesse kept him still and ultimately decided to just make it easier by carrying him bridal style. He could set Gabe down on the bed and clean the mess up, and find a shirt for Gabe to change into, considering he’d made a mess on the one he was wearing. That required Jesse to leave the room, go back to the group area, grab a shirt (his I want to believe shirt was still clean enough, at least) and a towel that nobody would care about. 

He sighed as he went to clean the mess back in Gabe’s room, throwing out the ice cream and towel once finished. Once that was done, Jesse walked over to the bed he’d laid Gabriel down on, and made haste changing the mans shirt. Although Jesse’s was a little tight on him, it was still fitting enough to be comfortable and not bother Gabe too much. The man whined a little as Jesse laid him back down and sat on the edge of the bed, sighing. Less than twenty four hours, and he’d be alright. Jesse could watch him that long, Lord knows nobody else would bother. He fiddled with the age-worn crystal around his neck Angela had given him and thought for a moment, feeling Gabe shift around on the bed.

“Angelino,” Gabe had said, softly.

“Hmm?” Jesse replied, absentmindedly, forgetting the use of the nickname. Gabe had been using it on and off since his arm got botched, and Jesse no longer flushed at it. He still wasn’t sure why Gabe had so easily adopted the nickname into his vocabulary, but it was a nice gesture anyways. (He pretended to not know, at least, but evidence as of late was pointing in a direction he was not willing to step.)

“Can you lay with me?” He asked quietly, and Jesse paused.  _ Sharing a bed isn’t cheating. _ Jack had been okay with the affection Gabe had shown him in the hospital, he was sure Jack would be okay with it now at least.

Jesse hesitated a moment before nodding and laying down, letting Gabe wrap his arms around him. He pretended to not enjoy this as much as he really was, that this was just some way for Gabe to relax, that it was just a tool for comfort. But Gabe sighed in contentment, and Jesse figured that was a good enough sign at least. Jesse let himself relax in Gabe’s embrace, accepting his fate. 

“Fuck,” Gabe murmured. “Head’s killin’ me.”

“That’s what you get for hazing recruits,” Jesse replied, grinning. “Ana’ll get your second in command to pull us out within the next twenty four hours.”

“That’s good,” Gabe said.

“Yeah, considerin’ you’re double concussed. ‘Dunno why they didn’t pull you off the field after the first one,” Jesse said, repeating what Ana had said earlier. He wouldn’t lead Gabe on to the fact he was being watched the whole time.

“Dunno,” Gabe mumbled. “ _ To torture me, probably.” _

_ “You’re being overdramatic,” _ Jesse retorted.  _ “Ana said the report of your first concussion got shuffled away.” _

It felt comfortable, speaking so casually with Gabriel in Spanish, but it probably wasn’t the best sign that Gabe could barely muster English at this point. He’d probably not get any sleep, needing to wake Gabe up every hour or so to make sure he didn’t get his own concussion. Jesse wished he’d brought a book, or something of the sort. But hearing Gabriel’s quiet chuckle at being called over dramatic made his thoughts flutter away, and he felt his face heat up just a little.

“ _ Sure she was pissed, _ ” he managed to slur.

_ “She wanted to lecture me, but had to go to your Second in Command,” _ Jesse laughed a little at that.

“ _ You’re my Second in command, _ ” Gabe said in confusion. God, he was worse for wear.

“ _ I’m you’re acting Second in Command, Gabi, _ ” Jesse had pointed out. There was a pretty big difference, he thought so at least. He didn’t really have the authority to pull Gabe off the field.

Gabe hummed in response as he shut his eyes, sighing a bit. Jesse could have sworn he heard the man purr, but that was probably his imagination more than anything. He was also probably imagining the fact Gabriel was so relaxed, when on missions he was usually so high strung. Jesse half expected him to be more high strung since he’d lost an arm last time, but Gabriel proceeds to defy his expectations.

Jesse was lost in his own thoughts, shifting before Gabe held on a little tighter. “ _ You won’t...leave, right? _ ”

Jesse paused at that, and managed to roll over, sitting up on his arm and looking at Gabriel. He looked upset, like he was doing his own thinking when Jesse had been doing his. But more than anything, Gabe was the one asking for him to stay, seeming like he’d break if he’d have to be alone for just a few minutes.

“ _ I can’t really leave, no,” _ Jesse says. “ _ I’m the one keepin’ watch on you.” _

_ “I mean in general,” _ Gabe asks. That raised a bit of a flag for Jesse, but again, the man had a concussion. He was probably over emotional from all of that.

But Gabe’s eyes were pleading to him, really, in a sense that had Jesse responded no, he could have broken the man. He looked lost, and he looked in pain, and in that moment, Jesse made a promise to himself that he wouldn’t want to see Gabriel like that at any other point.

“ _ I won’t leave, _ ” he finally says. “ _ Promise. _ ” The question was odd enough from Gabriel, but he supposed he could calm the sudden anxiety he had shown.

Eventually, they laid back down, and eventually, they had both fallen asleep. Jesse had woken Gabe up at hour intervals, making sure he wasn’t going into a coma, and that he didn’t have any internal bleeding. After about the fourth time, though, Jesse had fallen asleep himself, and hadn’t woken up until the sound of someone coming in had startled him awake, gun in hand and ready to shoot.

Except for the fact it was Ana, and her sniper rifle was slung around her chest. She had a knowing look in her eyes, and Jesse felt himself cower at her gaze. It wasn’t anything hostile, but she’d known about his crush, and he didn’t want to give the impression that he was looking to get in between Jack and Gabe. He’d made that a point as often as he could. But she walked over to Gabriel, and pulled him up. “Jesse, help me out,” she requested.

“Yes ma’am,” Jesse nodded, going to help Gabriel up and startling him awake. He was too badly concussed to actually make a move to protect himself, but he quickly relaxed when he recognized Ana and Jesse, and relaxed into their grips. Ana had let go and let Jesse pick him up, all dead weight since he couldn’t necessarily support himself. Ana was right back on the phone, angry Arabic coming out and scolding the ones who had messed up and nearly let Gabriel hurt himself further with the double concussion. She led the two out, pointing over to a van that they’d be taking back to the Zurich base, since they were only out five hours from the base.

Jesse sat with Gabe, opposite of Ana and awaiting her lecture. But a lecture never came, she just tossed him a thermos with tea in it she’d brought along, and told him to drink it. “Thank you for watching Gabriel,” she said, going to take a sip from her own thermos.

“Just doin’ my job,” he laughed a little, looking at Gabe, who’d fallen asleep again. “He’s pretty tough at least.”

“You’re correct,” she nodded. She had another statement on the tip of her tongue, the way Gabe had been curled up with Jesse before she’d awoken them seemed natural for the two. What she had wanted to say was, ‘ _ I think you should talk to Gabriel and Jack about your feelings, because Jack has been kinder, and when I informed him you were keeping an eye on Gabriel, he had said at least he was in good hands. _ ’

Instead, what had come out was, “Do you have an idea on who he’s keeping?”

What Jesse wanted to say was, ‘ _ I heard Gabi moan my name, and now the feelings I’ve worked so hard to avoid are resurfacing, coupled with the fact he calls me angelino and seems to be affectionate. Jack has been kinder, as well, and I’m worried I’ve done what I feared doing most. _ ’

Instead, he responded, “The AFEUR girl, the SEAL, maybe a couple of others. They tried the Jesse McCree challenge.”

Ana chuckled at that, though, “You’ve left quite a mark on Blackwatch customs.”

Jesse grinned and nodded, ignoring the weight of Gabe leaning on him. Maybe this was Jesse’s life, destined to fawn over two men who he felt he had no chance with, looking from a distance. Destined to one night stands and no loving remarks from those, sneaking out the next morning and never having a repeat, maybe that was the reality he’d accepted for himself. As long as Jack and Gabe were happy, he could be content with that. He didn’t think it would be possible to get over the feelings, anymore, it’d been far too long. But ana didn’t look down on him for it, and neither did Angela, and he could bring himself to be content with it all, bring himself to smile through it all. Gabe cared for him in his own way, at least, and that was good enough. Jack was kinder, now, and that was good enough.

“Guess I have,” Jesse hummed.

“Just be more careful, next time,” Ana adds in, taking another sip of her drink. Jesse nodded, and kept his gaze on Gabriel, wondering if she knew something he didn’t.

By the time they’d returned to the base, Jesse did his report, and immediately went to lock himself in the room to edit the video. Gabriel was under Angela’s care, but according to a text from her the next day, he was doing much better. Jesse finished editing the video, made his way down to the med bay, and went to visit Gabriel.

He tossed the phone down on to Gabe’s chest, grinning, the video already playing. And though Jesse expected the man to immediately go and fire his ass, he was pleasantly surprised, when Gabriel just began laughing and shaking his head.

“God, I can’t believe I forgot English, none of them will take me seriously now,” he said, handing the phone back to Jesse.

“Aw, that’s not true, they’ve got some respect I’m sure,” Jesse joked, pocketing his phone and grinning.

The filter was removed immediately, and Jesse was told to delete the video. Naturally, he just gave it to Ana and Jack, and let Fareeha have a longer ‘uncut’ version to show her friends. Ana and Jack had absolutely lost it, asking Jesse to send them each their own copies, and being told to never do that again. Fareeha vowed to ruin Gabe’s image amongst the girls in her squadron.

He considered this, the laughter from everyone, a good enough scenario for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> some last minute notes  
> -i wrote a lot of this while listening to drake  
> -the second part took me s o long  
> -alex has another fic called memento mori, it's in this series, go read it :3c  
> -next part WILL be sad.

**Author's Note:**

> Some fun last bit notes  
> -I have a notepad full of all the BW group chat names  
> -The song quote from the beginning is Eight Ball God by nowHere. its also where the title comes from  
> -I went through 20 titles for this fic  
> -Some GM names are names that come from my GM's.  
> -You should go read Our Old Bones Rattle to see post recall! And go read Hida's fic, It Made My Problems Fade Away  
> -I'm So Sorry


End file.
